


Life: From Then to Now

by fandomgurl77



Series: The Origin AU [1]
Category: Dumbo (2019), Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja, The Greatest Showman (2017)
Genre: Abandonment, Abusive Father, Child Abuse, Crush, Death, Death of parent, Domestic Violence, Drug Use, Dysfunctional Family, Gen, Heartbreak, Marriage Proposal, Mental Abuse, Multi, Neglect, Period-Typical Sexism, Physical Abuse, Pregnancy, Surpressed Talent, Tragedy, animal cruelty, long-lost child, talent show
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-27
Updated: 2020-04-27
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:54:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 30
Words: 30,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23870092
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomgurl77/pseuds/fandomgurl77
Summary: This is the origin of my version of V.A Vandevere and Sotheby.
Series: The Origin AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1720267
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the origin of my version of V.A Vandevere and Sotheby.

_It was April 25 th, 1880 when a young boy saw an advertisement nailed to a tree in a park in Manhattan…_

‘Mother!’ five-year old V.A Vandevere exclaimed as he ran up to a beautiful middle-aged woman wearing a light red dress and a fur shawl, ‘Mother! The circus is in town from tomorrow!’

‘Let me see’, the woman, Shelley, said as she followed her son back to where the advertisement was.

‘See?’ V.A asked, ‘It’s the famous Barnum’s Circus. Can we go to the first show tomorrow night at 7:30? Please?’

‘Well…’ Shelley said, ‘Ok, Valiant. But only since that meeting with your father at the law firm tomorrow night has been cancelled.’

‘Thanks, Mother’, Valiant said, ‘I knew I could count on you.’

‘Anyway’, Shelley said, ‘It’s time for us to head home for dinner. Dad’s counting on us to be back by 5:00.’

‘Ok’, Valiant said before they walked up to a waiting black carriage, climbed in and closed the door.

‘You know, Mother’, Valiant said as the carriage moved along the road, ‘I believe that in the not too distant future, people will be sharing the roads with cars and buses, while aeroplanes and airships will be a frequent sight in the sky.’

‘Oh, Valiant’, Shelley said, ‘You’ve always had a wild imagination ever since you were little. We’ll see what the future brings.’

‘Father’, Valiant said at the dinner table, ‘I saw something in the park today while walking with Mother.’

‘I see’, Valiant’s father and Shelley’s husband, Horace, said, ‘What was it?’

‘It was an advertisement nailed to a tree…’ Valiant began.

‘What for?’ Horace asked, feeling a bit uneasy about what the response was probably going to be.

‘It was for, uh, Barnum’s Circus’, Valiant replied, ‘The first show is tomorrow night at 7:30.’

 _‘Not **that** drowned rat of a man again!’ _Horace thought.

‘I see’, Horace said, ‘Well then, come into the day room after dinner and I’ll have a word with you about it.’

‘Ok’, Valiant said.

However, Horace was not happy about what had been said at the table at dinner when he closed the big mahogany door to the day room.

‘I’ll tell you now, Valiant, that you will **not** be going to that **atrocious monstrosity** called Barnum’s Circus!!’ he shouted.

‘What?’ Valiant asked while sitting on the rocking chair in the corner. ‘Why not?’

‘Because this “Barnum” guy’s shows are filled with deformed and disabled individuals; outcasts who are considered **abominations** in society!’ Horace replied, ‘Not to mention the dirty, smelly animals, such as the horses, elephants and lions; I do **not** want my son to **ever** be involved in that low-brow life!’

‘But…’ Valiant replied, almost in tears, ‘It’s…it’s been my life-long dream to go to the circus!’

‘Well, tough luck!’ Horace shouted, ‘You’re going to grow up to become a lawyer and **my** successor, so you can kiss your childish dreams goodbye! And don’t you **dare** think that your mother will be taking you either!’

‘Ok, ok!’ Valiant sobbed before he left the room and closed the door, ‘I’ll stay and study like a good scholar!’

**A few minutes later…**

‘Valiant!’ Shelley said as her son entered her bedroom, ‘Son, what’s wrong?’

‘Father said…he s-said…’ Valiant sobbed, ‘That I’ll **never** be going to the circus and that I-I need t-to stay and s-study to b-become a l-lawyer!’

‘Oh, sweetie’, Shelley replied when she hugged him, ‘We’ll go to before they leave New York, I promise.’

‘Really?’ Valiant asked.

‘Really’, Shelley replied, ‘Everyone’s got to have a little fun sometimes.’


	2. Chapter 2

Fortunately, Horace was at work later than usual the following evening and had unintentionally left the house keys on the kitchen table.

‘Right then’, Shelley said when she picked the keys up and headed for the main lobby, ‘Ok, Valiant. It’s time to leave.’

‘Ok’, Valiant said as he descended the stairs and headed to the open door.

‘Thank you, Marcus’, Shelley said to the servant holding the door open, ‘Make sure everything is ready when we return.’

‘Yes, mam’, Marcus said before closing the door, ‘Have a good time.’

**Ten minutes later…**

‘Ok, Valiant’, Shelley said when they emerged from the carriage near the docks, ‘Let’s go and buy our tickets.’

‘Ok’, Valiant said as they walked to the end of the line at the ticket booth.

Finally, after five long minutes, they arrived at the window, where Shelley asked for tickets for one adult and one child.

‘Here you go, ma…’ the person in the booth, a man known as Mr. O’Malley, began before he looked up and realised who he was talking to.

‘Oh, my goodness’, he said in a stunned voice, ‘Are you…Mrs. Shelley D. Vandevere??’

‘Yes, I am’, Shelley said, ‘I and my son, Valiant, have decided to come to see the show.’

Meanwhile, P.T had overheard them talking while walking past and came over to investigate.

‘Oh, my…’ he said upon seeing Shelley, ‘Mrs. Vandevere. It’s a great honour to meet you.’

‘The pleasure’s all mine, Mr. Barnum’, Shelley said.

‘I believe you know my wife, Charity, and our daughters, Caroline and Helen, from the social group’, P.T said, ‘They can’t stop talking about you, especially Caroline and Helen.’

‘Yes’, Shelley said, ‘I just can’t believe how much the girls have grown since we first met fifteen years ago.’

‘Me neither’, P.T said, ‘Time goes so quickly these days. Anyway, the show starts in five minutes.’

**An hour and ten minutes later…**

‘Amazing!’ Shelley said as the stands began emptying, ‘Absolutely incredible!’

‘Wow…just…wow!’ Valiant said as he stood up and climbed down to the ground.

‘Glad you liked it’, P.T said as the lead singer approached them, ‘Anyway, this is Lettie Lutz, the lead singer.’

‘Pleased to meet you, Lettie’, Shelley said, ‘I’m Shelley D. Vandevere, wife of the famous lawyer Horace Vandevere, and this is our son, Valiant.’

However, Valiant was somewhat reluctant to introduce himself.

‘Go on, Valiant’, Shelley said, ‘Say hello.’

Before he could respond, however, he noticed Lettie’s beard.

‘Huh?’ he said before looking back to his mother, ‘She’s got a beard!’

‘Valiant, be nice’, Shelley said, ‘Lettie can’t help her condition. Now, please say hello.’

‘Very well’, Valiant said before he faced Lettie.

‘Good evening, Lettie’, he said, ‘I’m Shelley’s son, Valiant.’

‘Pleased to meet you’, Lettie said.

‘You have such an amazing voice, Lettie’, Shelley said.

‘Thank you’, Lettie said, ‘My singing voice is what led to Barnum hiring me, well, that and my beard.’

‘I see’, Shelley said, ‘Anyway, it’s time to head home; Horace will be back within the next hour.’

‘Ok then’, P.T and Lettie said, ‘Goodnight.’

‘Goodnight’, Shelley and Valiant said before they disappeared out the main entrance.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warnings: This chapter contains graphic depictions of physical and mental domestic violence, animal cruelty and cocaine use.

However, the next morning bought trouble; Horace had figured out that Shelley and Valiant had gone to the circus the previous night, thanks to a work colleague who had the evening off.

‘VALIANT! SHELLEY! Come into the day room, NOW!!’ he shouted, causing the servants to stop what they were doing and scatter as Shelley and Valiant headed down the stairs and into the day room.

‘You, worthless twit!!’ Horace shouted at Shelley as he slapped her hard across the face, ‘You took **him** to the circus last night, didn’t you!?’

‘Y-yes’, Shelley said nervously, ‘How d-did you know?’

‘Maybe your feeble woman brain was too thick to think that one of my colleagues could have BEEN THERE ON HIS EVENING OFF!!' Horace shouted as he pushed her roughly against the wall.

‘Mother!’ Valiant shouted before Horace turned towards him.

‘ **You** …’ he said. ‘You’re nothing but a useless lying pile of garbage!’

‘No…father…please…’ Valiant said nervously while shaking and cowering with fear as he stormed towards him with a long cane in his hand, ‘It won’t h-happen a-again, I p-promise!’

‘It’s too late for that now’, Horace said coldly, ‘You’re going to get it so bad that you’ll be hurting all over for a week!’

However, before he could do anything, Shelley ran at Horace and tackled him to the floor.

‘Stay away from him, you berk!’ she shouted before she bit his hand hard enough to draw blood, resulting in him punching her in the face and beating her on the floor.

‘Mother!!’ Valiant sobbed as she was flung about like a ragdoll.

Finally, after 40 seconds, Horace stood up and opened the door.

‘There, he said before slamming it and leaving, ‘I hope you’ve learned your lesson. Don’t **ever** do that again!!’

After he left, Valiant walked up to his battered and bruised mother.

‘Valiant…’ Shelley said weakly, ‘Mum’s going to be ok. I’m so glad he didn’t get to you.’

‘He w-was about t-to use that c-cane on m-me’, Valiant sobbed as they hugged.

‘I know’, Shelley said, ‘I’ll never let anything happen to you.’

Later that afternoon, Horace decided to take Valiant out on a “special boy’s outing.”

‘Valiant’, he said as he entered one of the upstairs bedrooms, ‘Why don’t you come with me to get away from the house for a while?’

‘Ok’, Valiant said as they headed downstairs and to the front door.

‘So’, Marcus said when he opened the door, ‘You’re going to take Valiant out for a while.’

‘Yes’, Horace said, ‘We won’t be back until later tonight.’

‘Ok, I’ll be sure to tell Shelley’, Marcus said.

‘Thanks, Marcus’, Horace said before he and Valiant walked out the door, ‘See you later.’

‘See you later, sir’, Marcus said before closing the door.

‘Right’, Horace said as he and Valiant walked to the streetcar stop at the corner and waited for the 1:45 p.m. streetcar, ‘Firstly, we need to go to the Dawson Building on 4th Street.’

‘Ok’, Valiant said just as the streetcar stopped in front of them before they climbed on and Horace paid the conductor before taking a seat.

**Twenty minutes later…**

Horace and Valiant disembarked at the stop outside the Dawson Building and bordered a waiting carriage which took them to yet another skyscraper before walking down into the basement via a disused and overgrown ramp at the back of the building.

‘Hey, Horace’, a male voice said from a nearby table as soon as they walked inside, ‘Looks like you’ve bought your son along to watch this afternoon’s matches.’

‘Yes, Johnson, that’s exactly what we’re here for’, Horace said, ‘I decided that it’s time to show him how to be a man.’

‘We’ve bought our sons as well’, Johnson and his friends said.

Meanwhile, Valiant had found a row of big, rusty metal cages containing vicious-looking dogs beside a huge, dusty, blood-stained pit surrounded by benches.

 _‘Whoa!’_ he thought, _‘What’s going to happen here?’_

A few minutes later, Horace took Valiant to one of the benches as two of the cages were unlocked and the dogs led by two muscular brutes into the pit and to opposite sides before the men left and sat down on one of the benches.

‘Here’s where the excitement begins, Valiant’, Horace said as the starting bell rang and the air filled with vicious growling and barking as the dogs ran towards each other.

**Three minutes later…**

‘Wasn’t that incredible?’ Horace said as the dogs were led out of the pit, both covered with blood and one having been mortally wounded in the fight, although the handlers didn’t seem to care at all, before the winner from the previous fight was pitted against a white-and-grey dog from another one of the cages.

‘No…’ Valiant sobbed, ‘It’s cruel!’

‘Come on’, Johnson said, ‘Be a man and toughen up!’

‘Yes’, Horace and the others said just before the next fight started.

 _‘I want to go home’_ , Valiant thought, _‘This is so inhumane and sick!’_

However, as the afternoon went on, Valiant started to become desensitised to the dogs’ suffering, to the point where he even cheered for the winners of every fight.

‘So, what do you want to do for half-time, Valiant?’ Horace said as the pit was cleared and cleaned while people were sitting at the tables and either eating, drinking, gambling or getting high.

It was then that Johnson’s son, Edward approached them while carrying a small container.

‘Hey, Valiant, I’ve got something here that I think you’ll like’, Edward said as he opened the lid on the container slightly, revealing a mysterious powder.

‘What is that?’ Valiant asked.

‘Dad calls it “magic powder”’, Edward replied, ‘Just one good sniff of this and you’ll be away with the fairies.’

‘Ok’, Valiant said, ‘I’m in.’

‘Ok then’, Edward said as he handed him the container, ‘Just sniff through the lid.’

‘Right’, Valiant said before he inhaled deeply and returned the container.

‘WOW!’ he said when he began hallucinating, ‘I’ve never experienced anything so amazing before!’

‘Well then’, Edward said, ‘Why don’t you go up to the bar and buy some?’

‘Ok, I will’, Valiant said.

‘Come to think of it, I’ll go up with you’, Horace said.

‘You better hurry’, Edward said, ‘The next fight starts in a couple of minutes.

‘Ok’, Valiant said before he and Horace walked up to the bar just as people began returning to the benches and two more dogs were led into the pit.

Over the next two hours, Valiant watched the carnage unfolding in the pit whilst completely devoid of any emotion except joy for the winner.

‘Right, Valiant’, Horace said as the basement slowly emptied, ‘It’s time to go home.’

‘Yes’, Valiant said as they walked outside, up the ramp and around the corner onto the busy street where they bordered a waiting streetcar, ‘Today was fun.’

‘I’m glad you liked it, son’, Horace said, ‘I’ll take you next Saturday if you’d like.’

‘Ok’, Valiant said, ‘It’s a deal.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Being repeatedly exposed to animal cruelty and domestic abuse as a child is the reason why my Vandevere is so messed up and indifferent to animal (or human) suffering.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings: As with the previous chapter, this chapter contains graphic depictions of animal cruelty and drug use.

_1 st November _

_1885_

_3:15 p.m._

‘Come on, Jerome’, 11-year old Valiant said to his only friend at school while they were walking towards the front gates, ‘It’ll be fun, I promise.’

Jerome thought about this for a second and agreed reluctantly.

‘Well’, he said, ‘Ok then, I’ll go. But I need to be home by 4:50 at the latest.’

‘Good’, Valiant said as they walked down the footpath to a waiting carriage, ‘Let’s go!’

**Ten minutes later…**

‘Well, here we are’, Valiant said as they descended from street level down an overgrown ramp and walked through the doors at the end, ‘Welcome to _The Pit_.’

‘Wow!’ Jerome said in awe, ‘I’ve never seen anything like it! Anyway, why do they call this place _The Pit_?’

It was then that they walked around a corner and saw a huge, deep concrete pit surrounded by benches, ‘This is the pit where the party really comes to life, but there isn’t anything scheduled until Saturday, unfortunately. However, I can show you the bar on the other side of the basement.’

‘Ok’, Jerome said before they walked across the room and up to the mahogany bar when Valiant noticed a basket of small containers like the one that Edward had shown him the first time he was at _The Pit_.

‘Hm…’ he said, ‘I’ll tell you what; I’ll buy two of these; one for you and one for me.’

‘Um…ok’, Jerome said, ‘What are they?’

‘You’ll see in a few minutes when we sit down’, Valiant said, ‘Trust me, they’re little bundles of fun.’

 _‘Fun, you say?’_ Jerome thought as Valiant handed a couple of notes to the person behind the counter and gave him one of the containers before they sat down on a bench.

‘Right’, Valiant said as he twisted the brass lid on his container to reveal three small holes in the top, ‘Now, just do exactly as I do and you’ll feel incredible.’

‘Ok’, Jerome said as he twisted the lid on his container to expose the holes.’

‘Good’, Valiant said before he put his nose up to the lid of the container and inhaled deeply before his pupils went wide, ‘Just give the lid one good sniff…’

‘Ok’, Jerome said as he did the same before he found himself flying through space with dancing planets and stars surrounding him.

**An hour later…**

‘…And that’s the power of so-called “Magic Powder”’, Valiant said as they walked up the ramp, ‘I first tried it when I was five when Father bought me here.’

‘Well, I’ll have to remember this place for when I run out’, Jerome said, ‘That was amazing!’

‘Thanks for bringing me to _The Pit_ again, father’, Valiant said that Saturday afternoon as he and Horace entered the basement where some of Horace’s work colleagues were sitting at a table.

‘Hey there’, Johnson said, ‘It’s Horace and Valiant again!’

‘Johnson!’ Horace said, ‘How are you going?’

‘Very good, thank you’, Johnson said, ‘Anyway, there’s going to be a lot of excitement in the pit today.

It was then that Valiant noticed that something was missing from the room.

‘Father?’ he asked, ‘I don’t see cages…or dogs anywhere.’

‘Ah, that’s because there are no dogs at all today, Valiant’, Horace said.

‘Oh’, Valiant said disappointedly.

‘But there are roosters’, Johnson said, ‘Just go to the storage room and you’ll see rows of cages.’

‘Ok’, Valiant said as he walked past the pit and disappeared through the door.

 _‘Wow!’_ he thought as he looked around and saw two long rows of cages each containing a single rooster; some of the birds’ legs had sharp metal spikes attached to them via metal rings, _‘These birds must be destined for the pit today.’_

Suddenly, the two closest cages to him were opened and the occupants were taken by two men out the door and into the pit, where the benches were filling up.

‘Better get a move on, kid’, one of the men said, ‘First fight starts in a couple of minutes.’

‘Ok’, Valiant said before he walked over to a vacant seat and sat down.

‘Excited?’ Horace asked.

‘You bet!’ Valiant said while not feeling any emotion whatsoever, ‘I wonder which one will win?’

‘Ah, I’m rooting for the red one’, Horace said, ‘Fireball is his nickname, because he fights like a raging wildfire; been the champion at _The Pit_ for the last three years.’

‘Yeah’, Valiant said, ‘The other feeble-looking grey thing doesn’t stand a chance.’

Just then, the starting bell rang and the chaos began.

**Five minutes later…**

‘…And the winner is…Fireball!’ one of the men who had been in the storage room moments before shouted as the audience cheered while the other, half-dead and bloodied bird was removed.

‘See, Father?’ Valiant said as the grey bird was carried past him and into the storage room before another bird was brought out a few seconds later, ‘Just like I told you; pathetic.’

‘Yes’, Horace said, ‘I thought that too as I was watching the action.’

‘Anyway’, Valiant said, ‘Here’s the next opponent.’

**Two hours later…**

‘Let’s give a round of applause to our first ever four-time champion, Fireball!’ one of the announcers shouted joyfully as the benches erupted in clapping and cheering.

‘That was amazing, Father’, Valiant said as people began to leave _The Pit_ , ‘I _still_ can’t believe how skilled that bird is!’

‘Well, I know his trainer, if you would like to meet them tomorrow’, Horace said.

‘Oh, boy’, Valiant said, ‘An animal trainer! I’ve _definitely_ got to go with you.’

‘Ok then’, Horace said, ‘It’s a deal; we’ll leave home tomorrow morning after breakfast.’


	5. Chapter 5

_October 12 th_

_1890_

_4:35 p.m._

‘You, _stupid_ imbecile!!’ Horace shouted at 16-year old Valiant while waving a piece of paper frantically in the air, ‘You got an **F-** on your Social Studies assignment!!’

‘Come on, father’, Valiant said when he rolled his eyes, ‘You know I _hate_ that class.’

‘Well then, you better start liking it, or you’ll be OUT ON THE STREETS!!’ Horace shouted.

It was then that Valiant spoke his mind.

‘You know what, father?’ he said, “You’ve done nothing but tell me and Mother what to do and when throughout our lives, while **you** have enjoyed living the high-life and bragging to your, um, now ex- colleagues, all while smoking and drinking your sorrows away at the bar every night before coming home, only to scream at us just because you can. Well, I’ve had enough, quite frankly, and I’m sure that Mother has too.’

He then opened the door and began to walk towards a room with a piano in it.

‘Now, if you’ll excuse me’, he said, ‘I’m going to practice for my piano recital tomorrow night. Don’t disturb me.’

‘Oh, no you don’t!’ Horace said when he snatched the music sheets from Valiant’s hand and stormed towards the fireplace, which already had a lit fire in it, ‘I’m going to **burn** this garbage and destroy that blasted piano once and for all!’

However, before he could drop the sheets onto the burning wood, the door opened.

‘Mother’, Valiant said, ‘Father was just about to burn my music for tomorrow night!’

‘WHAT!?’ Shelley shouted at Horace in shock, ‘You can shout at us, humiliate us by any means possible, and even subject us to physical abuse, but **no-one** interferes with my son’s piano practice!!’

Horace couldn’t believe what he had just heard; his own wife standing up to and shouting at him. So much so, in fact, that he finally had a mental breakdown.

‘THAT’S IT!’ he shouted as he stormed out of the room and towards the lobby, ‘I’ve **had** it with living with you wackos. I’m going to move so far away, that I’ll be able to brag about it!’

‘But, father…’ Valiant said as Marcus opened the front door, ‘Please don’t leave!’

‘Horace…’ Shelley said, ‘What about your stuff upstairs?’

‘Keep it’, Horace said, ‘Do whatever you want with it, I don’t care. Just as long as you don’t send it to me.’

‘Well then’, Valiant sobbed, ‘I suppose this is goodbye.’

‘Goodbye, Shelley and Valiant’, Horace said before he walked out the door, ‘I won’t miss you.’

‘So long’, Shelley sobbed.

After Marcus closed and locked the door, Shelley and Valiant hugged each other and burst into tears.

‘I can’t believe he’s really gone!’ Valiant sobbed.

‘Me neither’, Shelley sobbed, ‘But at least we won’t have any more terrible nights, such as the night after he was fired from his job.’

‘Yes’, Valiant sobbed, ‘That was one of the worst; he couldn’t stop shouting expletives at us and the servants until bed-time.’

At 9 p.m. that Thursday, Shelley was sitting in the middle of the second row from the stage in the auditorium at the local secondary school as a trio of sisters finished playing their violins on the stage before the audience erupted with cheering and applause.

‘Let’s hear it for the Hudson sisters!’ a woman at the front of the stage shouted as the curtains closed, ‘Now, prepare for a breath-taking performance by our very own pianist…’

Suddenly, a man popped his head through a gap in the curtains and whispered something to the woman.

‘Ok…huh-uh…got it’, the woman whispered before the man closed the curtains again.

‘And now, without any further ado, please give a hand for our 16-year old pianist, Valiant-Ardeux Vandevere!’

The audience cheered and clapped as the woman left the stage and the curtains opened, revealing Valiant sitting on a black stool in front of a shiny black grand piano before he started playing a sonata.

‘Wow!’ one of the Hudson sisters, Janice, whispered to her two sisters as the melody from the stage filled the auditorium, ‘He takes my breath away.’

‘Mine too’, one of her sisters, Kathy, whispered before all three of them sighed as the melody came to an end and the audience once again erupted in applause.


	6. Chapter 6

The next morning bought some shocking news in the form of a letter from the bank.

 _‘Oh, no…’_ Marcus thought as he picked the envelope up and read the front of it while fearing the worst, ‘ _I have a bad feeling about this…’_

‘About what?’ Valiant asked when he walked into the lobby.

‘Oh, Valiant’, Marcus replied, ‘Could you please take this letter to your mother? It’s from the bank.’

‘Ok’, Valiant said as he took the envelope and headed upstairs.

‘Mother’, he said as he walked through the second-floor day room and through the open glass and mahogany doors onto the balcony, ‘Mother, I have a letter for you from the bank.’

‘Thanks’, Shelley said as she took and opened it.

However, the contents of the letter didn’t make for happy news at all.

‘What?’ Shelley asked in a shocked voice, ‘We’ve been kicked out??’

‘Let me see’, Valiant said before he took the letter and began reading it.

_Dear Mr./Mrs. Vandevere,_

_This letter is to inform you of your foreclosure due to your failure to pay $15,000.01 in debt over the last three months. You have until 11:30 a.m. to pack up and move out of the house before the repossession team arrives._

_Regards,_

_Remington Bank_

‘See?’ Marcus said as he walked out onto the balcony, ‘I told you it wouldn’t be good.’

‘You’re right’, Shelley sobbed, ‘I can’t believe that this is how we’ve ended up.’

‘Come on, Mother’, Valiant said, ‘I suppose we should go and start packing our cases.’

‘But where are we going to live?’ Shelley said, ‘We can’t just go out into the street; I suppose we’ll just have to move in with my sister, her husband and three children until we can sort this out.’

‘No! There has to be a way’, Valiant said, ‘I’ll become a professional pianist, playing at stage shows on Broadway and at weddings and other events; we’ll have enough money to secure a house in no time!’

‘That sounds great, Valiant’, Shelley said, ‘However, I think it will still take a long time to earn enough money to buy a house.’

‘Speaking of that’, Marcus said, ‘What’s going to happen to me and the other servants?’

‘Oh’, Shelley said sadly as her heart sank, ‘About that, since we don’t have any money other than the $250.97 that I withdrew from our bank account a few weeks ago, it breaks my heart to say that…you’re dismissed, all 150 of you.’

‘I’m sure going to miss you’, Valiant sobbed when he hugged him, ‘You were like a father figure to me ever since I was little.’

‘I’ll miss you too’, Marcus said, ‘We all will.’

‘Mr. Giles’, a 17-year old boy said to the teacher at 10:55 a.m. on Tuesday a couple of weeks later in woodworking class, ‘Sorry to interrupt, but where is that V.A kid? He hasn’t been here for the last two weeks at least.’

‘Good question, Samson’, Mr. Giles said as he walked over to him, ‘Unfortunately, in order to maintain privacy in accordance with school policy, I cannot disclose any information to you or anyone else.’

‘Why not?’ Samson asked.

‘However, I can say that there have been “family issues”’, Mr. Giles replied quietly, ‘Anyway, it’s time to resume sanding the lid for your keepsake box off.’

‘Ok’, Samson said as he picked the lid and a piece of sandpaper up.’

**Meanwhile, in the 10 th grade sewing class…**

_‘WHAT!?’_ Janice thought when she overheard the three girls beside her quietly talking about a rumour that had been originally started by two senior boys the previous Wednesday at lunchtime.

‘So’, one of them, Chloe, whispered while stitching a pattern on her machine, ‘I’ve heard that he’s…been withdrawn as of a fortnight ago.’

‘Who?’ her twin sister, Cleo, asked before it dawned on her, ‘It wasn’t that V.A kid, you know, the one whose father…’

‘Got fired from the law firm?’ their friend, Kathleen, said, ‘Rumour has it that he suddenly walked out on him and his mother earlier this month.’

‘Yeah’, Chloe said, ‘He was a total snob of a lawyer who annoyed some young socialite from upstate who then complained to his boss.’

‘Not to mention that their house was foreclosed upon shortly after he walked out’, Cleo said, ‘No wonder he’s been withdrawn – the family has barely got any money left.’

‘I believe that they’re living with relatives in Manhattan’, Kathleen said, ‘Probably an overcrowded, squalid apartment, as the rumour goes.’

‘Agreed’, Chloe said, ‘Such a shame, really; he was a nice kid.’

Suddenly, the door opened and the principal walked in with an important announcement.

‘Good morning, Mr. Wilcox’, the class and teacher said as they stood up.

‘Good morning, 10G’, Mr. Wilcox said, ‘Sorry to interrupt your work, but there’s an impromptu assembly in the hall in five minutes for the whole school.’

‘Ok’, the teacher, Mrs. Jansen said before addressing the class, ‘Ok, girls, it’s time to pack everything away and come to the hall.’

‘Yes, Mrs. Jansen’, the class said collectively before they followed through with the instructions they had just been given and headed out the door and down the hall.

**An hour later…**

‘I can’t believe he’s gone!’ Kathy said as she and Janice left the hall in a sea of students.

‘Me neither’, Janice sobbed, ‘But you heard him, he said that they were in no position for him to be here anymore.’


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is short because it would have looked and read awkwardly if I had combined with the next chapter.

‘That was terrible’, Vandevere said on the streetcar as it came to a stop in front of the shelter down the road from the apartment building that he, his mother and her sister’s family were living in.

‘I know, I know’, Shelley said as they disembarked the streetcar after thanking the driver, ‘But everyone needed to know that you wouldn’t be attending anymore.’

‘I guess’, Vandevere said.

‘Anyway’, Shelley said as they walked down the road, made a left-turn and walked through a large oak door into a small lobby with a spiral staircase starting at the far right-hand corner, ‘It’s time for lunch.’

‘It was then that Vandevere had an idea.

‘Mother’, he said, ‘Why don’t we take the lift today?’

‘Um…’ Shelley said, ‘How about if you take the lift today, while I take the stairs?’

‘Ok’, Vandevere said as he pushed the button to open the doors and stepped inside.

‘Remember’, Shelley said just before the doors closed, ‘You need to go to the 7th floor.’

**Five minutes later…**

‘…7a, 7b, 7c and…7d’, Shelley said as they walked down the corridor and around the corner while reading the numbers on each, ‘Time to go in.’

Just then, the door opened to reveal a middle-aged woman on the other side.

‘We’re back, Jacqui’, Shelley said, ‘How’s Tyler been?’

‘He’s been good’, Jacqui said, ‘Well, as good as any active four-year old can be. Anyway, the twins are at school and Thomas is at work, so the house has been mainly empty and quiet without anybody around.’

‘Sounds like the four of us can finally have lunch in peace’, Shelley said, ‘Anyway, what’s for lunch?’

‘Well’, Jacqui said, ‘I decided to use the ingredients that we bought while shopping at the general store yesterday to make some pork and cheese sausage rolls and steamed vegetables.’

‘Sounds delicious’, Shelley said, ‘Let’s go in and try some.’


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> V.A gets his first job; tragedy strikes the Vandevere household...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last third (approximately) of this chapter is a bit of a tearjerker.

Two months later, Vandevere was sitting at a desk in the waiting area of the local clinic while his mother was being seen by the doctor.

 _‘There’_ , he thought after adding the finishing touches to a picture that he had been working on for the past week, _‘All done.’_

It was then that the picture caught a middle-aged man’s eye as he walked past.

‘Hey, young man’, he said as he turned to face him, ‘I like your picture; the amount of detail is amazing.’

‘Thanks’, Vandevere said, ‘I am quite the artist.’

‘Ok, enough of the small talk’, the man said, ‘I’m Kenneth J. Dickson and I direct some of the biggest shows on Broadway. Anyway, I’ve been looking for a talented artist to design advertisements to draw audiences in.’

‘Ok’, Vandevere said, ‘How much will you pay?’

‘Well, for a kid with your natural abilities, I’ll pay between $40 and $80 an hour, plus a bonus of up to $100 per show, depending on audience numbers. I’ll even throw in your own flat across the road, with all utilities covered, of course.’

 _‘Hm…’_ Vandevere thought, _‘It all sounds good, but how do I tell mother and the rest of them??’_

‘So, what do you say?’ Kenneth asked, ‘Is it a deal?’

‘Um…well…ok’, Vandevere replied, ‘Count me in.’

‘See you tomorrow evening at 6:00’, Kenneth said, ‘By the way, what’s your name?’

‘I’m V.A Vandevere, sir’, Vandevere said.

‘Well then, V.A’, Kenneth said, ‘Keep the drawing up to the standard in your picture and you’ll be living well.’

‘So, there you have it’, Vandevere said after lunch the next day, ‘I’ve been hired by a Broadway director named Kenneth J. Dickson to design advertisements for his shows, so I’ll be moving into a flat across the road from there this afternoon.’

‘I can’t believe it!’ Shelley said, ‘Your first job commences tonight!’

‘We’re going to miss you so much!’ Jacqui said, ‘Even though it’s not the type of work that I would have wished for, it’s still greater than sitting at home doing nothing all day.’

‘I’m going to miss you too’, Vandevere said, ‘However, I will write to you every week and visit during the holidays; who knows – you may even see me sometimes handing flyers out during the day.’

**At 8:00 p.m. that Saturday…**

‘Excellent job, V.A.’, Kenneth said to him across the road from his flat, ‘Last night’s performance was a complete sell-out and full-house, thanks to your relentless advertising.’

‘Thanks’, Vandevere said as he was handed 180 dollars.’

‘Keep the good work up and you’ll be as famous as me one day’, Kenneth said before he walked away, ‘Anyway, have a good evening and get plenty of rest.’

‘You too, Mr, Dickson’, Vandevere said before retreating across the road, unlocking his door, walking inside and locking up.

 _‘I think I’m going to enjoy this life’_ , he thought as he put the money into a brown, wooden box and prepared to light a fire in the fireplace.

However, four and a half years later, tragedy struck…

_May 2 nd,_

_1895,_

_2:47 p.m._

_‘Hm…’_ Vandevere thought while scanning the shelves of the local general store, _‘What one should I get?’_

Suddenly, a familiar woman rushed over to him and said that something was seriously wrong.

‘Valiant!’ the woman, Jacqui, said while catching her breath, ‘Something terrible has happened at home and…’

‘Jacqui!’ Vandevere said, ‘Long time no see! Anyway, what were you saying happened at your place?’

‘It’s your mother’, Jacqui said, ‘She’s taken ill again.’

‘Ok’, Vandevere said as they hurried out of the store and around the corner to Jacqui’s apartment building, ‘How is she?’

‘Well’, Jacqui said as the elevator car zoomed up to and opened on the seventh floor, ‘It seems to be more than a mild illness this time…’

However, neither of them was prepared for what they saw or heard when Jacqui opened the front door of flat 7d; there were sounds of repetitive coughing and wheezing coming out of one of the three bedrooms, in addition to a small pile of blood-stained tissues beside the bed.

‘Mother!’ Vandevere said as he rushed over to her, ‘What’s happened to you?’

‘Oh, Valiant’, Shelley said weakly, ‘I’ve seemed to contract…’

It was then she was overcome by a coughing fit, which prompted Jacqui to rush over with some tissues.

‘That’s it’, she said when Shelley took the tissues and held them up to her mouth, ‘Let it all out.’

However, the thing that concerned Jacqui and Vandevere the most was that the spots of blood on the tissues were now significantly larger than before.

‘That’s not good…’ Jacqui said upon seeing the red spots, ‘The doctor said that this could happen…’

‘Said that what could happen?’ Vandevere asked.

‘Well’, Jacqui replied, ‘We had a doctor visit yesterday to see what was wrong with your mother…’

‘And?’ Vandevere asked, ‘What did they say?’

‘The doctor concluded after a few minutes…that, unfortunately…Shelley has contracted a severe case of tuberculosis.’

‘What?’ Vandevere asked, knowing all too well what this could possibly mean, ‘Is there anything that can be done to help?’

He was heartbroken to see Jacqui slowly and sadly shake her head.

‘I wish there was’, she sobbed, ‘But, tragically, she’s been diagnosed too late to survive through it.’

‘No...’ Vandevere said as he turned to face his mother, ‘Mother…’

‘Oh, Valiant’, Shelley said weakly, ‘I’m on the way out.’

‘No…please…’ Vandevere sobbed, ‘Please…don’t go…not yet…’

‘I know’, Shelley said weakly, ‘I don’t want to go either. Anyway, there’s a couple of items in the living room that I’ve entrusted to you.’

‘Really?’ Vandevere asked with a tear-stained face.

‘Really’, Shelley replied before she took her final breath and fell silent.

‘Mother…mother??’ Vandevere sobbed before bursting into tears, ‘NOOOO! MOTHER!!’

It was then that Jacqui hugged him.

‘Come on’, she sobbed, ‘Let’s go and see what’s in the living room.’

‘O-ok’, Vandevere sobbed as they walked out of the room and made a left turn.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vandevere inherits some gifts from his mother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter and the previous one are split in two - I didn't notice until I posted this one how short it was - oh well, here it is anyway.

‘What are these?’ Vandevere asked while investigating two items wrapped in brown paper – one was a large, square box shape and the other one was elongated and thin.

‘You’ll have to open them up and see’, Jacqui replied.

‘Ok’, Vandevere said, ‘I’ll start with the thin one first.’

He walked over to the thin object and began unwrapping it, eventually revealing a long cane with a metal head.

‘It’s a family heirloom that belonged to our late father, Jean-Claude Vândé’, Jacqui said.

‘Thank you so much!’ Vandevere said, ‘I promise that I’ll take good care of it.’

‘Ok’, Jacqui said, ‘Best you see what’s in the box.’

Vandevere couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw what was inside the box; a brand-new film projector.

‘Oh, my goodness!’ he said, ‘I’d wanted to get one of these since they came onto the market last year.’

‘We knew you would like it’, Jacqui said, ‘Hopefully you will put it to good use someday.'


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A woman falls for V.A while on holiday in Toulouse, France; Sotheby is fired from his first job...albeit unfairly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This and the next few chapters contain a brief take on the origin of my version of Sotheby; this is detailed more in my other story called "Secrets" - this story is not required reading though; I just wrote it for fun.

_March 16 th,_

_1899,_

_Somewhere in England_

‘YOU’RE FIRED!!’ a male voice screamed from behind two big mahogany doors.

‘Wait…’, another male voice said, ‘What?’

‘Don’t speak back to me!’ the man who had just fired the other man, Richard Larson, one of the wealthiest men in England. shouted in a fit of rage, ‘I will **not** be bossed around by a lowly servant…especially the one who IMPREGNATED **MY** DAUGHTER!!’

‘But…sir’, the other man said before being cut off, ‘I didn’ do _anything_ , I promise!’

‘No, and I suppose the baby bump appeared from out of nowhere’, Richard said, completely unconvinced, ‘Well, I’m sorry, Sotheby, but my family and this house have no time or space for a scoundrel like you!’

‘Sir, I’m serious…it was not my fault’, Sotheby said.

‘Now be gone!’ Richard shouted so loudly that one of the doors swung open, ‘And be careful that the door doesn’t hit you on the way out.’

**Three minutes later…**

‘Sotheby….’ one of the maids, Gloria, said downstairs in the lobby, ‘We know you didn’t do it – all 200 of us.’

‘Yes, another maid said, ‘Lillian has been in a secret relationship with a young bachelor from down the road for a couple of years. Then one day, she found out that she was pregnant…’

‘Yes’, Gloria said, ‘However, since you were technically Lillian’s personal servant, Richard and his wife immediately accused you of wrongdoing as soon as Lillian showed physical signs of the pregnancy.’

‘And it’s unfortunately led to me being fired, even though I didn’t do anything’, Sotheby said, ‘I just hope he knows who he’s up against, regarding my bloodline…’

_March 16 th,_

_1899,_

_Toulouse, France_

‘Hasn’t it been a lovely spring evening?’ a man named John asked his younger 22-year old sister.

‘Definitely’, Claudia replied at the back of the dance hall, ‘I’m so glad that we came here to Toulouse for our holiday.’

It was in that split-second that she saw him.

‘Me too, Claudia’, John said, ‘Claudia?’

‘Wow!’ Claudia said as the mystery man made his way through the crowds of people on the dance floor, ‘Who in the world is _he_?’

‘Have you not heard?’ John said, ‘He’s the son of the second-eldest daughter of the prestigious Vândé family and a Dutch immigrant who became one of America’s most famous lawyers, Horace Oog der Veer.’

‘I see’, Claudia sighed, ‘He sure is easy on the eyes. I’ve just got to know his name…’

‘Name’s Valiant-Ardeux Vandevere’, the mystery man said to Claudia, ‘I’m assuming that’s what you were wanting to know, right?’

‘Uh…well…y-yes, Mr. Vandevere, s-sir’, Claudia said while blushing hard and shaking, P-pleased to m-meet y-you.’

‘It’s an honour to meet you, Mr. Vandevere’, John said, ‘I’m Claudia’s older brother, John.’

‘Pleased to meet you both’, Vandevere said.

‘Anyway’, John said, ‘What brings you here?’

‘I’m here to visit my late mother’s family in Vândé Castle’, Vandevere said.

‘Do _I_ have to PHYSICALLY THROW YOU OUT the door, or are you going to leave by yourself IMMEDIATELY!?’ Richard yelled as he reached the bottom of the grand staircase and walked towards Sotheby.

‘I’m just leaving now, sir’, Sotheby replied as the door opened.

‘Good, because I almost broke my back yesterday while bringing a table inside’, Richard said, ‘Anyway, your time here is up now. Vamoose!’

‘But where will I live?’ Sotheby asked from outside the open door, ‘I ‘ave nowhere to go and no money.’

‘Oh well’, Richard said, ‘Maybe you should’ve thought of that **before** you did what you did to Lillian!’

‘Once again, sir, I did _not..._ ’ Sotheby said before the door was slammed in his face.

**Ten minutes later…**

_‘Looks like I’ll be going to the poorhouse, since the family has disowned me for my life’s decisions’_ , Sotheby thought as he walked down the main road through the nearest town, _‘Why did I even decide to give up my aristocratic life for one of domestic servitude!?’_

Suddenly, he noticed someone throw a large shovel-full of a brown sludgy substance at him while shouting, ‘Boo!! Get out of town, you big, fat loser!!’

 _‘Oh my…’_ Sotheby thought as he ducked just in time, causing the load of horse manure to splatter over the door of a townhouse behind him, _‘Phew! That was close.’_

Meanwhile, one of the two occupants of the house, an elderly lady named Francine, opened the door after seeing what had just happened through the front window.

‘Hey, you!’ she said while angrily pointing at the perpetrator across the road, ‘Look what you’ve done to my door, filthy street rat!’

‘What did _I_ do to _you_ to make you so angry, crazy old tart!?’ the young man named Fred shouted, ‘By the way, _I_ think your door looks a whole damn sight better than before with the new ornament.’

‘Do you want me the notify my son about this so he can come and arrest you, or are you too feeble for jail?’ Francine asked.

‘Uh…let me think about that for a minute…’ Fred replied hastily before running away.

After Fred had disappeared, Sotheby turned to face Francine.

‘Who are you?’ Francine asked.

‘The name’s Sotheby. Pleased to meet you’, Sotheby replied, ‘What’s your name?’

‘I’m Francine’, Francine said, ‘Anyway, what brings you here?’

‘You see’, Sotheby said, ‘I was one of the 201 servants working for the Larson family approximately quarter of an ‘our south of ‘ere, until an ‘our ago, when I was fired for supposedly doing somethin’ that I didn’ even do.’

‘Goodness’, Francine said in a shocked voice, ‘I’m so sorry to hear that.’

‘Anyway’, Sotheby said, ‘Since I’ve been disowned by my family for becoming a domestic servant, I now ‘ave no money or place to live.’

‘Oh, you poor thing’, Francine said, ‘Come inside, Sotheby, our home is your home.’

‘Thanks’, Sotheby said as they walked inside before Francine locked the door.

‘No problem’, Francine said, ‘Anyway, my husband is in the parlour.’

‘Ok’, Sotheby said as they walked into the parlour, where Francine’s husband was sitting in a rocking chair in the corner.

‘Oscar, dear’, Francine said, ‘I would like you to meet Sotheby, our new lodger.’

‘Pleased to meet you, Sotheby’, Oscar said before asking Francine, ‘Why is he here?’

‘Well’, Francine replied, ‘Sotheby was fired earlier today from the Larson Estate down the road, leaving him without an income or a home.’

‘I see’, Oscar said, ‘Why did you not want to move back in with your own family?’

‘That is not an option for me, unfortunately’, Sotheby said, ‘Ever since they found out that I’d decided on a life of servitude, they immediately kicked me out and cut all ties with me.’

‘Interesting’, Oscar said, ‘Just what is your surname then?’

‘It’s Crawley, sir, I mean, Oscar’, Sotheby said.

‘What?’ Oscar and Francine said with shocked voices, ‘But…they’re aristocrats!’


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claudia and V.A spend the night together...and go all the way. ;)

_March 19 th,_

_5:30 p.m._

‘Dinner was delicious tonight, John’, Claudia said while they were sitting on a park bench feeding a small group of ducks with leftover bread.

‘Yes, it sure was’, John said, ‘It’s such a shame that we have to return home tomorrow morning.’

‘Yeah’, Claudia said, ‘But at least we can come back here again some time.’

‘That’s true’, John said, ‘Anyway, it’s a good thing that you have packed most of your belongings into your suitcase ready for tomorrow.’

‘Oh’, Claudia said, ‘That reminds me; I have to pack those shoes that I purchased yesterday.’

‘Oh’, John said, ‘You mean those red ones?’

‘Yes’, Claudia said.

‘Anyway, it’s getting late’, John said when he looked at his watch, ‘We’ve got to go back to the room.’

‘Ok’, Claudia said before they stood up and walked away.

However, Claudia had devised a secret plan regarding how to end the holiday…

‘There’, Claudia said when she walked out of the bathroom into the main part of the hotel room wearing a light green dress, ‘I think I’ll go and get something for dessert at the store down the road.’

‘Hm…are you sure?’ John said, ‘It’s just that it’s almost dark…’

‘I’ll be fine’, Claudia said as she put her bag over her shoulder and opened the door, ‘Don’t worry, I won’t be long.’

‘Ok’, John said, ‘Please be careful.’

‘Will do’, Claudia said before she closed the door and walked down the hall to the stairs.

As soon as she walked through the lobby and out the main doors, she took out a piece of paper from her bag that she had received the previous day at a café.

 _‘Ok’,_ she thought after reading the address and returning the piece of paper to her bag before walking up to a parked carriage at the side of the road and hopping in, _‘I hope you’re ready to meet me tonight, V.A.’_

‘Good evening, Mam’, the driver said, ‘Where would you like to go?’

Claudia then told the driver the address that was on the paper.

‘Ok’, he said before the carriage moved away from the kerb and down the road.

**Fifteen minutes later…**

‘Thank you very much, sir’, Claudia said as she paid the driver and stepped out of the carriage before it disappeared into the night.

 _‘Now’_ , she thought as she walked in though the main doors of the hotel and up to the reception desk.

‘Good evening, Mam’, she said to the woman at the desk, ‘I was just wondering where room 70B is; I have a friend staying in that room who is expecting me.’

‘Sure’, the woman said, ‘Just go up the stairs to the second floor, walk down the corridor and make a right turn; it’s the first door on the left.’

‘Ok’, Claudia said before she headed for the stairs, ‘Thanks.’

_‘Ah’_ , she thought a few seconds later when she stopped outside the door of room 70B and knocked, _‘Here it is.’_

It was then the sole occupant of the room opened the door.

‘Claudia!’ the occupant, Vandevere, said, ‘I knew you would come!’

‘How have you been doing, Valiant?’ Claudia asked as she hugged him.

‘I met up with my mother’s family yesterday afternoon after leaving the address and room number with you at the café’, Vandevere said.

‘Anyway, let’s make the last night of my holiday one to remember’, Claudia said before she walked in and locked the door after hooking a “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door handle.

**Seven and a half hours later…**

_‘Goodness’_ , John said to himself back at his and Claudia’s hotel room with a concerned voice, _‘Oh gosh, where is she?’_

He then lay back down on the bed under the blanket and sheet and closed his eyes.

**Meanwhile, in room 70B…**

‘That was incredible, Valiant’, Claudia said as they lay together in the only single bed in the room, ‘I can’t believe how skilled you are.’

‘I knew you would like it’, Vandevere said, ‘A very…extraordinary experience, if you ask me.’

‘Tell me about it’, Claudia said, ‘It’s as if you’ve done it many times before.’

‘Speaking of that, I’ll let you in on a secret’, Vandevere said.

‘What is it?’ Claudia asked.

‘Well…’ Vandevere replied, ‘Would you believe that…I go solo at least twice a week, if you know what I mean?’

‘What?’ Claudia whispered, ‘But that’s the…well… _you_ partake in the…um, “solitary vice”?’

‘Um, well…yes’, Vandevere admitted before thinking, _‘Oh no, what have you done? She’s going to scorn you for admitting your secret.’_

‘The truth is…I indulge in it too’, Claudia said with a devilish grin before winking, ‘So that must be the explanation…’

‘For how I made you…and myself…go completely insane?’ Vandevere asked.

‘Well, yes, there’s that, but I was thinking about that scar you have’, Claudia replied.

‘Oh’, Vandevere said, ‘You mean the tiny chevron-shaped one?’

‘Yes’, Claudia said, ‘It must have been horrendously painful to acquire, yet it looks so cool and neatly done; how exactly did you get it?’

‘Well, one night in June 1889, my father caught 14-year old me doing something in my bedroom that I shouldn’t have been doing and decided to take me to the hospital to rid me of the habit permanently, and not through the silver wire treatment either; just thinking of that makes my spine tingle, and not in a good way’, Vandevere said.

‘I can imagine how painful either treatment would be…and I’m a woman’, Claudia said, ‘So if you weren’t stitched up…then that means…they were going to cut that part off.’

‘Yes’, Vandevere said, ‘Naturally, I was terrified of losing it when the surgeon produced the blade he was going to use. However, just before he could use it, my father insisted that he sterilise and use his office hole punch that had small triangle-shaped blades that clamp together to create holes of the same shape, so he did; the pain caused me to pass out almost immediately.’

‘Yikes’, Claudia said, ‘And I thought having my thumb slammed on by a door was bad enough.’

‘However, the pain and misery didn’t just stop then’, Vandevere said, ‘The entire summer was ruined, since I had to basically stay at home for six weeks since it was too painful to walk much, if at all, not to mention caring for it and warding off infection; only Mother and the servants understood the pain I was in and would try different things to take my mind off it, while Father…well…he couldn’t really care less about what I had been, was, and still am to an extent, going through.’


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claudia finds out that she's pregnant and John is overjoyed but furious.

At 8:15 the following morning, John found Claudia sleeping on a couch in the lobby on the ground floor.

  
‘Claudia!’ he exclaimed when he rushed over, waking her up in the process, ‘Thank goodness you’re safe! Don’t ever do that again.’

  
‘Ugh…’ Claudia mumbled as she woke up and opened her eyes, ‘Hm…wha…good morning, John.’

  
‘Good morning to you too’, John said, ‘Anyway, we have to go back up to the room and pack the last few remaining items into our suitcases before leaving for breakfast.’

  
‘Ok’, Claudia said before she stood up and followed him to the stairs.

Once they were in the room a few minutes later, Claudia grabbed some clean undergarments, a thin singlet and a light blue dress from her suitcase before heading into the bathroom, closing the door and placing them on the small seat opposite the toilet.

  
‘ _Right_ ’, she thought as she started to pull her dress up over her head, ‘ _Time to change out of these and put them in the case._ ’

  
However, she was unprepared for what she saw on her cream-coloured silk petticoat as soon as she had removed the dress.

  
 _‘Oh, my goodness!_ ’ she thought in a panic while looking at the small reddish-brown mark, ‘ _It can’t have come yet; I only had it a week and a half ago._ ’

  
She hastily removed the petticoat and her underwear, the centre and front of which were spotted with blood that had soaked through to the other side.

  
‘ _What the heck is going on?_ ’ she thought before she remembered the talk that her mother had given her just a year and two days prior for her 21st birthday, ‘ _Goodness. Now I remember that sharp pinching sensation last night; it must have been torn._ ’

‘Are you ok in there, Claudia?’ John said, ‘We’ll miss out on breakfast if we don’t get a move on.’

  
‘Coming’, Claudia said as she hastily put a couple of clean, folded-up rags into her clean underwear, pulled them up and put the rest of her clothes on before wrapping the soiled underwear and petticoat in a thick ball of paper and placing them and the other clothes into the case before locking the metal clasps.

  
‘There’, she said, ‘All ready to go.’

  
‘Ok then’, John said as they picked up their closed suitcases and headed out the door and down to the reception desk to check-out.

**Two and a half weeks later…**

‘Ohhh…Claudia’, John said before taking a small bowl into the bathroom to be washed, ‘That’s the fourth time you’ve been sick today, not to mention the eighth time since this began late yesterday morning.’

  
‘I’ve been feeling a bit under the weather for these last few days, but I’m not sure why exactly’, Claudia said, ‘Not to mention I’ve had pains in my lower back and around that general area that have been constantly coming and going.’

  
‘Hm…come on’, John said, ‘I think that you should be seen by a doctor so we can figure this out.’

  
‘Perhaps you are right’, Claudia said.

  
‘I’ll just leave you to get dressed’, John said before leaving the room and closing the door.

**Forty minutes later…**

‘Miss Noiseaux’, the doctor said as the three of them were sitting in his office, ‘From the tests that we’ve done, I can hereby conclude…’

  
‘Conclude what?’ Claudia asked.

  
‘What illness has my sister contracted that is causing these bouts of vomiting and lower back pains?’ John asked.

  
‘No, no…’ the doctor replied, ‘Your sister isn’t ill at all. In fact, she’s perfectly healthy.’

  
‘Then what could be causing this?’ John and Claudia asked.

  
‘Mr. Noiseaux’, the doctor replied, ‘Your sister…’

  
‘Yes?’ John asked, completely unaware of the coming shock, as was Claudia.

  
‘May I be the first to say…congratulations’, the doctor replied, ‘Your sister is two and a half weeks pregnant.’

  
‘WHAT??’ John and Claudia asked with shocked voices and expressions.

  
‘That’s the explanation for the lower back and abdominal pain and the morning sickness’, the doctor replied, ‘But don’t worry, it’s a perfectly normal part of pregnancy and should become less frequent over time.’

**On the way home…**

‘I can’t believe that this has happened!’ Claudia sobbed before bursting into tears, ‘Just think…I’m going to be a mother!’

  
‘There, there’, John said as he hugged her, ‘I was absolutely flabbergasted upon hearing the news too. However, we’ll make these nine months ahead of us the best time for you as you prepare for the birth.’

It was then that he remembered that Claudia had been left a room number and an address at a café on the second to last day of their holiday and that she had told him about “going to get something for dessert” the following evening before he found her on the couch the next morning.

  
‘ _Hm…_ ’ he thought for a few seconds before mentally yelling, ‘ _ **VANDEVERE!!**_ ’


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vandevere and Sotheby finally meet and get to know each other.

_October 25 th,_

_Somewhere in England_

‘Thank you, sir’, Vandevere said as he stepped out of a carriage after paying the driver and started walking towards the hotel on the corner.

 _‘Ah’_ , he thought while walking before stopping right outside, _‘Time to head back to the room and relax.’_

However, just before he could open the front door, a man dressed in fine apparel almost crashed into him.

‘Cor blimey’, he said in a working-class accent, ‘Sorry sir, didn’t see you; I was just on my way ‘ome.’

‘Dah, it’s okay. Anyway, pleased to meet you, sir’, Vandevere said, ‘I’m V.A Vandevere. Who are you?’

‘That don’t matter’, the other man said, ‘I just work at the ‘otel ‘ere.’

‘’You work here, eh?’ Vandevere asked.

‘Yes’, the other man replied, ‘I’m ‘ere from ‘alf nine ‘till ‘alf four every day.’

‘Ok then’, Vandevere said, ‘See you tomorrow.’

‘Good night’, the other man said before walking away.

After he had disappeared, Vandevere had a thought about what had just happened.

 _‘Hm...’_ he thought as he walked through the door, _‘That man’s suit didn’t match his accent at all…I think that I should get to know him better, starting from tomorrow morning.’_

At 10:00 the next morning, Vandevere was in the dining hall at the hotel when the man whom he had met the previous evening approached him and offered to take his empty plate and glass.

‘Good morning, Mr. Vandevere, sir’, he said as Vandevere handed him the plate and glass, ‘I’m the person whom you met las’ night, remember?’

‘Ah, yes’, Vandevere said, ‘By the way, I like your high-end suit.’

‘Thank you, Mr. Vandevere, sir’, the other man said in an upper-class accent, ‘That really means a lot.’

‘That’s it!’ Vandevere said, ‘I _knew_ that you must have been hiding your true accent.’

‘Yes’, the other man said, ‘I’ve had to hide who I really am ever since I was hired by the Larson family to work as a servant.’

‘So’, Vandevere said, ‘Why are you not there now?’

‘Well’, the other man said, ‘I was fired in March this year for supposedly “engaging in questionable activities with the daughter of the house” even though I didn’t do any such thing, so I am currently lodging with an elderly couple around the corner and working here to make money.’

‘I see’, Vandevere said just as he noticed that they were the only two people in the hall, ‘Listen, if you don’t mind me asking, what is your name?’

‘The name’s Sotheby’, the other man said, ‘Sotheby Crawley.’

‘What?’ Vandevere asked with a shocked voice, ‘ _You’re_ a Crawley?’

‘Yes’, Sotheby replied, ‘I’m the long-lost member of the family.’

‘How come?’ Vandevere asked.

‘Very well. I will tell you’, Sotheby said, ‘You see, all throughout my childhood for as long as I can remember, I’d always been fascinated by the day-to-day lives of the servants at home; when I was around age seven, I used to sneak down into the servants’ quarters to observe and explore – I wasn’t allowed to go there, of course, so I had to wait until no-one was watching before going down there or coming back up. It wasn’t until I was 16 that I finally admitted one evening at the dining table that I wanted to become a domestic servant; as soon as I had said this, the family kicked me out permanently and cut all ties with me. However, I still did a course in hospitality and graduated in 1897 with a degree; I was hired by the Larson’s a month later.’


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vandevere receives an angry letter from John; Sotheby moves to New York City in 1911 and is hired by Vandevere.

Later that afternoon, after Vandevere had checked out of the hotel and was waiting with his suitcase at a tram stop directly across the road, a mysterious woman gave him an envelope.

‘Mr. Vandevere’, she said when she gave him the envelope, ‘A letter addressed to you mysteriously turned up at the hotel reception.’

‘Who’s it from?’ Vandevere asked.

‘The name on the back says that it was sent by John Noiseaux of Paris, France’, the woman replied.

‘Um…ok’, Vandevere said, ‘Thank you.’

‘No problem’, the woman said just as the tram pulled up in front of them.

Once the tram was moving, Vandevere opened the envelope, pulled the letter out and unfolded it.

_“Dear V.A Vandevere,_

_As you may or may not remember, I, John Noiseaux, and my sister Claudia met you while we were on holiday in Toulouse. Anyway, a couple of weeks later, Claudia was plagued with bouts of vomiting and had recurring back and abdominal pain, so we went to the doctor for an answer and treatment; instead of this he declared that Claudia was two weeks pregnant...”_

_‘WHAT??’_ a shocked and overjoyed Vandevere thought before he resumed reading the remainder of the letter, _‘I…I can’t believe…that I’m a father!’_

_“…and it’s ALL BECAUSE OF YOU AND YOUR SNEAKY, SLEAZY WAYS!! How are we SUPPOSED to explain THIS to our parents, V.A!? She’s been married for almost two months to a man who, ironically, has the same name as me and she moved with him to the city of Marseille; how will he react **or** feel when he finds out that the baby is NOT HIS? That his then-future wife was DEFILED by some man in a hotel room while on holiday!? _

_I now know what Claudia meant when she told me that she was ‘going to get something for dessert’ on the last night of our holiday; she went to the address and room number that YOU had slipped her the previous day in the café and spent the night with YOU!! Well, I hope you are pleased with what you have done, V.A, because you are NEVER going to see each other again OR your child once it is born!!’_

_Regards and farewell,_

_John Noiseaux”_

‘Goodness’, Vandevere said when he folded the letter and placed it in the envelope, ‘What have I done?’

_September 13 th,_

_1911,_

_New York, USA_

_‘So’_ , Sotheby thought as he left Ellis Island in hopes of starting a new life on the opposite side of the Atlantic, _‘This is America.’_

He looked all around and ahead of him at the never-ending concrete and masonry jungle.

 _‘Where do I start?’_ he thought, _‘How does one make it in this place?’_

‘Hey!’ a middle-aged man said while walking with his wife and two sons, ‘Watch where you’re going, crazy fool!’

So, I’m a fool, eh? Sotheby said in a working-class accent, ‘Well, listen ‘ere; I came ‘ere for a be’er life in America.’

‘Oh yeah?’ the man said, ‘Well then, you may want to work on your accent; it’s as common as dirt.’

‘Yeah’, his eldest son said mockingly in the same accent, ‘Absolutely ‘orrible…no… ‘ideous!’

‘Seriously?’ Sotheby said, ‘I would stop it if I were you…’

‘Or what?’ the 12-year old boy asked before he noticed an advertisement stuck to a lamppost beside him.

‘Hey’, he said as he ripped it off and gave it to Sotheby, if you’re looking for work, why not start here?’

‘What does this ‘ere say?’ Sotheby asked before reading the advertisement, which happened to be from a new-founded company called Vandevere Enterprises.

_“WANTED! Personal assistant/servant. Will pay $50 an hour, will provide housing w/bed and utilities._

_Must have:_

  * _At least five years prior experience with working in a domestic setting;_
  * _A full driver’s licence;_
  * _A degree in hospitality;_
  * _A clean record (no criminal convictions);_
  * _Be kind, courteous and with a good sense of humour”_



‘You’re right’, Sotheby said, ‘I think I’ll apply for this job.’

**A week later…**

‘You’re hired’, Vandevere said to Sotheby as he took a piece of paper from him, ‘Congratulations, Sotheby.’

‘Thank you, sir’, Sotheby said.

‘Please’, Vandevere said, ‘Just call me Mr. Vandevere or V.A.’

‘Ok, Sotheby said, ‘Will do. So, what are we going to do now?

‘Hm…’ Vandevere said before remembering his plans for the day, ‘Oh, I remember. I want to go to the cemetery.’

‘Ok’, Sotheby said as he opened and held the door, ‘Let’s go.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter deals in part with death and is a tearjerker.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vandevere visits his mother's grave and lays flowers.

‘Well, here she is’, Vandevere said while they were looking at a dark green Rolls-Royce parked directly outside the door, ‘Beautiful, ain’t she?

‘Yes’, Sotheby said, ‘But how exactly did you acquire it?’

‘She’s a custom-built car that I decided to treat myself with using the money I had saved up over the last two decades from advertising shows on Broadway’, Vandevere said.

‘Broadway?’ Sotheby asked, ‘What’s that?’

‘Just think of London’s West End’, Vandevere replied, ‘It’s the same type of thing.’

‘Oh’, Sotheby said, ‘Now I get it.’

‘Anyway’, Vandevere said, ‘Let’s go.’

‘You know’, Sotheby said when he opened the back door, ‘I learned to drive with one of the first cars ever produced; a Benz horseless carriage.’

**Twenty minutes later…**

‘Right, Sotheby’, Vandevere said as they walked up to and stopped in front of an elaborately patterned headstone in the cemetery, ‘I need some time alone now.’

‘Ok’, Sotheby said before he returned to the car.

‘Mother…’ Vandevere said when he placed his hand on the headstone, ‘It’s your son, Valiant-Ardeux. My life has been going well ever since you left this Earth; I’ve met up with your family in France; become a father to at least one child; founded my own company last year; had an amusement park named Dreamland built since last November in Coney Island, which is due to open next April; had a car custom-built and delivered from the UK and have just hired a personal assistant. Oh, and I have a nice flat on the top floor of Vandevere Palace in Dreamland.’

A few seconds later, he felt tears coming on.

‘Why, Mother…why did you have to leave so soon?’ he sobbed, ‘You were the only parent I had who cared about me, even though it was only a tiny bit; you shielded me from Father’s violent outbursts of anger by willingly risking your life and taking the beatings in my place. You signed me up to piano lessons at school when I was 12 and to an art class so I would have a way to make money. But most of all…you b-brought me into this world and gave me as m-much love and enc-couragement as you c-could, even w-when you w-were absent.’

He then put a small bouquet of flowers at the base of the headstone.

‘T-thank you Mother f-for everything’, Vandevere sobbed before kneeling and bursting into tears just as dark grey clouds rolled in and it started raining, ‘I m-miss you s-so much!’


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vandevere introduces Sotheby to Dreamland; the grand opening is delayed due to the sinking of the Titanic; an angry would be customers hurls insults at Sotheby and in subsequently trespassed from the park by Vandevere.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My Vandevere had his office/rooms on the top floor of the large hotel-like building (Vandevere Palace in the story) before moving into the Tower in 1915.

_‘Whoa!’_ Sotheby thought as he drove past the front perimeter of Dreamland, which still had scaffolding around the Colosseum and tower, _‘What is this place?’_

‘Right’, Vandevere said before the car turned towards the gates, ‘Just make a left-hand turn here, Sotheby.’

It was then that Sotheby noticed the large brightly coloured sign on the gates.

_“Dreamland_

_NYC’s new premier amusement hub!_

_Opening mid-April 1912.’_

‘How on earth could you afford to build a place like this??’ he asked.

‘Well’, Vandevere said, ‘Let’s just say I was lucky that this plot of land was going for half the original price of $150,000 when I saw it for sale in July two years ago, so I decided to buy and clear it over the next two months; by 5th October, I had submitted planning and construction permits before finally being approved in early November, and here we are, on schedule to open in April.’

‘I see’, Sotheby said as the car moved through the open gates under the rainbow-shaped archway before they closed again, ‘Well, Mr. Vandevere, your creation is amazing, if I do say so myself.’

‘Thanks’, Vandevere said, ‘I’d had this vision ever since I was a young boy.’

Suddenly, a hammer fell to the ground from the scaffolding around the Colosseum, narrowly missing the car and hitting the pavement with a loud thud.

‘Oh, for crying out loud!’ Vandevere said as he wound the window down to talk to one of the workers, ‘Michael! Could you _please_ watch where you put your tools when they’re not in use? The car could have easily been dented or the roof torn…or worse…’

‘Sorry, boss’, Michael said, ‘I’ll be more careful from now on.’

‘Thank you’, Vandevere said before the car proceeded towards a big palace-like building to the left.

**Five minutes later…**

‘This place is going to be amazing when it opens’, Sotheby said as he plugged an electric lamp into the light fixture in the main room of Vandevere’s office/apartment, ‘Just imagine the joy it will bring to the faces of children… and adults, of course.’

‘Yes’, Vandevere said, ‘I am quite looking forward to opening day myself. Besides, Dreamland is going to be, and already is, _much better_ than the other two amusement parks in Coney Island, Steeplechase Park and Luna Park, the owners of which are my bitter rivals; thank goodness the unusually wet season last year forced the closure of the other one, Sea Lion Park.’

_Dreamland,_

_Coney Island,_

_April 16 th, 1912._

‘Cancelled?’ a member of the public asked outside the locked Dreamland gates.

‘I’m afraid so’, Sotheby said on the other side, ‘Today’s planned grand opening has been postponed until the 20th due to a tragedy in the Atlantic Ocean; the Titanic struck an iceberg and sank with Mr. Vandevere’s aunt Jacqui onboard.’

‘Oh’, the young man said, ‘I’m so sorry to hear about that. I completely understand the cancellation of the opening.’

However, not everyone in the crowd was so understanding.

‘Boo!!’ a woman shouted, ‘Fuck off, you wanker! I was promised a fun day out today, you po-.’

Sotheby was absolutely appalled upon hearing this.

‘Listen’, he said, ‘It’s not my fault that this has occurred now, is it? Also, you do _not_ have the right to abuse anyone in any way!’

Suddenly, another man shouted another insult.

‘BELL-’ he shouted before being cut off.

‘That’s enough!!’ Vandevere shouted as he approached the gates, ‘You have **no** right to maul my assistant by shouting abuse! Please just go and wait until the new opening day on the 20th and let me mourn my aunt in peace!’

Immediately upon hearing this, the crowd dispersed, however, one man stayed behind for a few minutes.

‘Ha! Ha!’ he laughed, ‘Your worthless aunt became fish food! How does that feel, stupid pillock?’

Vandevere stood on the other side of the gates, completely flabbergasted by what he had just heard.

‘What does “pillock” mean?’ he asked Sotheby.

‘It’s another word for idiot’, Sotheby replied.

‘You’re hereby trespassed for a month for insulting me and making fun of my aunt’s death!’ Vandevere said, ‘I don’t want to see you **anywhere** on _any_ of the four streets surrounding the park, or I’ll call the police. Do you understand?’

‘Yes, Mr. Vandevere’, the man said.

‘Good’, Vandevere said, ‘Now, vamoose!’

‘Yes, sir’, the man said before he disappeared around the corner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sea Lion Park, Steeplechase Park and Luna Park actually existed in real-life in Coney Island either before or around the same time as Dreamland.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vandevere buys a Ferris Wheel for Dreamland.

_Dreamland,_

_Coney Island,_

_April 20 th, 1912._

‘…so, without any further ado, I hereby declare Dreamland open!!’ Vandevere exclaimed when he cut a large red ribbon spanning the entrance before crowds of cheering people began flooding in.

‘Excellent job, Mr. Vandevere’, Sotheby said, ‘You sure know how to make people happy.’

‘Yes’, Vandevere said, ‘However, I feel that Stage 1 of Dreamland is still missing a basic component…’

‘But you’ve got everything you need right here’, Sotheby said, ‘There’s Gates of the Crystal Blue; Rocket to the Moon; Tower of Terror; Nightmare Island; Wonders of Science; the kiddie rides of Jollyopolis and all the sideshow attractions and food and drink stalls; plus the Colosseum, of course. Why would it need more?’

**A month later…**

‘Sotheby’, Vandevere said while standing in front of the Rocket to the Moon roller-coaster, ‘We have a problem…’

As soon as he had said this, Sotheby had a strange feeling.

‘Mr. Vandevere’, he said, ‘I have a feeling that I’m supposed to find what you just said funny, since we’re in front of Rocket to the Moon.’

‘Yes, Sotheby’, Vandevere said, ‘Perhaps I _did_ intend that small space-themed joke. However, what I’m about to say is no laughing matter; people are leaving Dreamland and opting to go to the other parks since we don’t have a Ferris Wheel.’

‘Come to think of it, you’re right’, Sotheby said.

‘How did I overlook this component in the initial planning?’ Vandevere said, ‘Anyway, we’ll need to buy one somewhere, and quickly, before Dreamland becomes a total failure.’

‘But where could you _possibly_ find someone selling a life-sized Ferris Wheel?’ Sotheby asked.

‘I don’t know, to be honest’, Vandevere replied before he remembered something that he’d read in the morning paper, ‘Unless…’

‘Unless what?’ Sotheby asked.

‘Pack your bags, Sotheby’, Vandevere replied, ‘We’re going to the World’s Columbian Exhibition in Chicago.’

‘What a day’, Sotheby said that Saturday afternoon just as they were about to leave the exhibition, ‘So much stuff-’

‘There…’ Vandevere said as his eyes widened, ‘Sh…she’s beautiful!’

‘What the…’ Sotheby said before he looked in the same direction, ‘Whoa!’

‘Have you not seen such an amazing sight?’ Vandevere asked while staring at the massive, shiny Ferris Wheel in front of him.

‘No, I haven’t’, Sotheby said, ‘And my family own some rather expensive crystal chandeliers and tableware, amongst other things.’

‘I’m going to go and ask the man how much it is worth’, Vandevere said, ‘This is just what I’m looking for to put in Dreamland.’

‘Ok’, Sotheby said as the two of them approached the seller.

‘Excuse me, sir’, Vandevere said, ‘But I was wondering how much you are selling the Ferris Wheel for.’

‘Oh’, the man said, ‘There was another man who showed interest in it as well; I’d be willing to part with her for $650.00, including shipping to anywhere in the US.’

‘Hm…’ Vandevere said, ‘Ok, it’s a deal.’

‘Thank you, sir’, the man said as Sotheby gave him the cash, ‘Anyway, what is your name?’

‘I’m V.A Vandevere, owner of Dreamland in Coney Island.’

‘I see’, the man said, ‘No wonder you wanted to snap the deal up so quickly; the other man who was interested in the Ferris Wheel is the owner of Steeplechase Park.’

 _‘Oh’_ , Vandevere thought, _‘It was him…’_

‘I see’, Vandevere said, ‘Well, I’m very glad that I beat him to it in terms of buying this thing; I can almost see the look of envy on his face when he sees it near Dreamland’s entrance.’

 _‘Yes’_ , the man thought, _‘You enjoy that thought, while I have to tell him the disappointing news that it has been sold when he returns in a few minutes.’_

‘Ok, Mr. Vandevere’, he said, ‘The Ferris Wheel will be shipped to Coney Island on Monday morning and should arrive by Tuesday evening at the latest.’

‘Thank you’, Vandevere said, ‘Nice doing business with you.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if I got the name of the Exhibition wrong; I did a basic search on Wikipedia for it.


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steeplechase Park burns down, causing the owner to have a mental breakdown.

_July 15 th,_

_1914,_

_2:20 p.m._

Suddenly the air was filled with the loud wailing of sirens as both fire trucks and horse-drawn wagons sped past Dreamland’s front entrance.

‘What the…’ Vandevere said to Sotheby as they rushed down the stairs from the office and out the main door of Vandevere Palace, ‘What the heck is going on?’

It was then that one of the technicians rushed over from the tower in a panic.

‘Good afternoon, Pipsqueak’, Vandevere said, ‘You look like you have just seen a ghost. Anyway, what’s with the fire brigade and sirens that just went past?’

‘I saw it from the Control Room…’ Pipsqueak replied, ‘Steeplechase Park…it’s burning!’

‘Bloody hell…’, Vandevere said in a shocked voice before being cut off.

‘Mr. Vandevere’, Sotheby said, ‘Please don’t say that…’

‘Sorry, Sotheby’, Vandevere said, ‘Anyway, I just hope that there is no-one trapped.’

‘Well’, Pipsqueak said, ‘I also saw a huge crowd of what I presume were visitors and staff gathered outside the main entrance.’

‘Come on’, Vandevere said to Sotheby, ‘Let’s go and see what is going on exactly.’

‘Um…ok, if you insist’, Sotheby said before they made their way to the main entrance and down the road to where plumes of black smoke were billowing into the clear blue sky.

‘Whoa!’ Vandevere said in utter horror as he watched the inferno devouring Steeplechase Park like a starving animal, ‘This is just terrible!’

It was then he heard a male voice shouting in despair and disbelief.

‘NOOOO!’ the man, O.X Vermont, shouted, ‘My…my b-beautiful masterpiece…it’s RUINED!!’

**Three and a half hours later…**

‘I’m so sorry about what just happened’, Vandevere said to Vermont while the charred and twisted remains of the park smouldered in the background, ‘Is there anything I can do to help?’

‘Hey’, Vermont said when he made eye contact with Vandevere, ‘You’re the person who stole that Ferris Wheel from me while I was in the bathroom at the exhibition a while back!’

‘First in, first served; I didn’t steal anything’, Vandevere said, ‘ _If_ you had wanted it so badly, then why didn’t you buy it _before_ your bathroom break?’

‘Well’, Vermont said, ‘I didn’t know that **you** were at the exhibition, let alone seeking to buy that exact Ferris Wheel! Had I known your intentions, I would have purchased it immediately, even if it was just to peeve you off, **_Vandevere_** _!_ ’

‘Anyway’, Vandevere said, ‘Going by today’s events, you should be glad that I acquired that mechanical masterpiece; it would have been destroyed in the fire otherwise…’

‘I suppose you’re right’, Vermont said, ‘I just _hate_ the idea that **my** customers will now be forced to go the either Dreamland or that blasted Luna Park! At least the Sea Lion Park was shut down, along with that dangerous roller-coaster within its gates…’

‘You mean the Flip-Flap Railway?’ Vandevere said, ‘Because I remember that well.’

‘You do?’ Vermont asked.

‘Yes’, Vandevere replied, ‘Been on it five times since it opened, and boy, was it an adrenaline rush; going through a vertical loop at speed from such a high height like that is something that you don’t forget easily.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The original real-life Steeplechase Park actually did burn down and was one of the two competitors of Dream Land; although it was rebuilt, unlike the latter park.
> 
> O.X Vermont is a parody of George C. Tillyou, the owner/founder of Steeplechase Park in the early days.
> 
> The Flip-Flap Railway was a real roller-coaster in Sea Lion Park; it was deemed too fast and dangerous for the time and subsequently closed down.


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vandevere is discovered by Sotheby to be a cocaine addict.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My Vandevere has a 6-year old adopted son named Bertie Dawson.
> 
> Trigger Warning: This chapter contains depictions of cocaine use.

At approximately 1:35 p.m. in the afternoon of the following Thursday, Vandevere had just sold the local store out of Coca-Cola.

‘Ok, Sotheby’, he said, ‘Time to place these two crates into the trunk.’

‘Don’t you mean the boot?’ Sotheby asked.

‘Trunk, boot, what’s the difference?’ Vandevere replied, ‘They mean the same thing.’

‘Right’, Sotheby said as he opened the boot, ‘If you say so.’

**An hour later…**

‘Dad!’ Vandevere’s 6-year old adopted son, Bertie Dawson, shouted as he ran down the corridor towards Vandevere’s office, ‘Dad! I have something to show…’

However, he was completely mortified by what he saw when he opened the door.

‘AAAHHH!’ he shrieked before he began tearing up, ‘I n-need to get help!’

A few seconds after running the length of the corridor to the opposite side of the building, he banged loudly on Sotheby’s door.

‘Sotheby!’ he shouted, ‘Open up!’

‘What in the world…’’ Sotheby said on the other side before opening it, ‘Bertie…you know better than this.’

‘Sorry’, Bertie said, ‘It’s just that…t-the office…it was horrible!’

‘Ok’, Sotheby said as he and Bertie made their way back down the corridor and opened the door.

‘I can’t look!’ Bertie sobbed when he covered his eyes.

 _‘Oh my…’_ Sotheby thought upon seeing Vandevere sitting in his chair with bloodshot and wide eyes staring aimlessly at the ceiling while surrounded by empty bottles, _‘This has gone too far…’_

‘Get out, you fiend!!’ Vandevere screamed as Sotheby approached him.

‘You’ve drunk the lot, haven’t you?’ he asked.

‘What-difference make it does?’ Vandevere replied, the response not making any grammatical sense.

‘I _knew_ I shouldn’t have allowed you to buy those two crates’, Sotheby said, ‘Especially since you’re a cocaine addict!’

‘Shuddup, you crazed fool’, Vandevere said, ‘I ain’t no addict!’

‘Yes, you are’, Sotheby said, ‘I even found your secret stash of so-called “Magic Powder” in a small, metal container right at the back of one of the drawers in your desk!’

‘That’s non-a-ya business, Sof-by!’ Vandevere shouted, ‘Why don’t you just leave me alone?’

‘You need outside help and I’m going to arrange it for you’, Sotheby said.

‘What the heck is going on?’ Collette asked when she entered the room, ‘I heard shouting.’

‘Mr. Vandevere was high again’, Sotheby replied, ‘He drank though two entire crates of Coca-Cola within the course of 45 minutes.’

‘Seriously, V.A’, Collette said in disbelief, ‘You really need to get help and kick the habit. How would people react if they discovered that Dreamland is owned by a cocaine addict??’

‘I l-love you, ma Cherie…really, I do’, Vandevere said before he quickly kissed her.

‘Um…Mr. Vandevere, now is not the time’, Collette said before thinking, _‘No time is.’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The original Coca-Cola recipe had cocaine as one of the ingredients.
> 
> This is another reasonably short chapter.


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claudia find out about Dreamland; Vandevere moves into the Tower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another short chapter.

_February 21 st, 1915_

_Marseille, France_

_1:15 p.m._

‘How was your half day today, ma Cherie?’ Claudia asked her 15-year old daughter, Marie.

‘It was good, Mama’, Marie replied as she took a piece of paper out of her bag and placed it on the kitchen table before unfolding it, ‘Christina gave me this today at morning break.’

‘Ah yes’, Claudia said when she remembered about the overseas trip, ‘Her family must have just returned from their month-long holiday in America.’

‘Yes’, Marie said, ‘And this is an advertisement for an amusement park named Dreamland in a place called Coney Island in New York.’

Claudia’s eyes widened upon hearing the name “Dreamland.”

‘Mama?’ Marie asked, ‘What’s wrong?’

‘Oh’, Claudia replied, ‘It’s nothing.’

However, hearing the name had sparked a flashback to the early morning of 20th March 1899 in her mind.

_“Thanks for the wonderful night tonight, Valiant”, Claudia said before she left the hotel room, “I’ll never forget you.”_

_“I’m going to miss you too”, Vandevere said, “I hope you come to visit my future amusement park, Dreamland.”_

_“_ If _your life goes to plan, that is”, Claudia said._

‘Really?’ Claudia asked.

‘Yes’, Marie replied, ‘Why?’

‘I think that we should go there when the school year finishes at the end of May’, Claudia said.

‘Really?’ Marie asked, bright blue eyes glistening, ‘Can we?’

‘Indeed, we shall’, Claudia said, ‘The bank account has more than enough for us to go, thanks to your father working down at the docks.’

_May 21 st,_

_Dreamland_

‘So’, Pipsqueak said, ‘How’s your new office?’

‘It’s perfect, well, almost’, Vandevere replied, ‘The giant round window still needs to be installed behind the desk.’

‘Onto it, sir’, Pipsqueak said, ‘The contractors will be in to install it tomorrow morning. For now, though, if you need light in here, just push the light switch on the wall beside the door down.’

‘Ok’, Vandevere said, ‘Thanks.’

‘Now’, Pipsqueak said, ‘Sotheby, let’s go to your new quarters.’

‘Ok…’ Sotheby said before they left the room.

‘This is incredible’, Bertie said, ‘A brand new office space and apartment!’

‘And it’s going to be even better when the window has been installed’, Vandevere said, ‘Thank goodness that the park is currently closed for safety checks and verification.’


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Collette tells Bertie that Vandevere is the world's first computer programmer; he invented the first programming language named BlueCoat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yet another short chapter.

As the sun began setting on the evening of the following Wednesday, Bertie found something on the floor on one of the cars on the Sidewinder, a short, fast and thrilling Side-Friction type roller coaster.

‘What is this?’ he thought as he picked the folded piece of paper up and exited the ride before reading it.

Bertie was amazed to discover that, upon unfolding the paper, it was filled from top to bottom with lines of what looked like some sort of language.

‘Bertie, do you know what that is?’ Collette asked as she approached him.

‘No’, Bertie replied, ‘It looks like a foreign language.’

‘Hm…what if I was to tell you that it’s part of the software code for the animatronics in the Wonders of Science building?’ Collette replied.

‘No way!’ Bertie said, ‘They understand _this_?’

‘Yes’, Collette said, ‘It’s a programming language named BlueCoat, and guess who created it…’

‘Hm, let me think here…’, Bertie said, ‘Wait a minute! It can’t be…’

‘Mr. Vandevere?’ Collette said, ‘If you were thinking that, then you were correct.’

‘ _He’s_ a programmer??’ Bertie asked, completely flabbergasted at this news.

‘Well, he did create the world’s first programming language for the animatronic displays, so I suppose it’s true’, Collette replied.

‘Ah’, Vandevere said as he approached and took the piece of paper out of Bertie’s hand, ‘I was looking for this all day. Where did you find it?’

‘It was on the floor in the front of one of the cars on the Sidewinder, Dad’, Bertie said, ‘I found it when I had a ride a few minutes ago.’

‘Well, thank you for…’ Vandevere said before he realised something, ‘Wait a minute. Did you just say you went on the Sidewinder?’

‘Yes’, Bertie said, ‘Why?’

‘Ugh, those twits!’ Vandevere said as he facepalmed, ‘They _know_ that you’re not tall enough to ride!’

‘Well, they didn’t tell me that’, Bertie said, ‘Come to think of it, the guy at the controls didn’t seem to mind or care; he just looked at me and said, _“Dah, you’re plenty tall enough. Go ahead and enjoy.”_

‘Oh, he did, did he?’ Vandevere said, ‘Well then, I’ll give him a good talking to later about this matter. You may be my adopted son, but that doesn’t mean you get special permission to ride everything.’

‘Anyway’, Bertie said, ‘Collette said that you invented the BlueCoat programming language for the displays in the Wonders of Science building.’

‘Yes’, Vandevere said, ‘It’s as old as the park itself, which opened on April 20th, 1912. This paper shows a program for flipping pancakes, which will be programmed in next week.’

Unfortunately, someone had overheard this while walking past and made an appalling pun.

‘Oh, so the robot will be flipping fake pancakes?’ they said, ‘Gee, just the thought of it gives me the _crepes_!’

In response to this, Vandevere and Collette stared blankly at the young woman who made the joke.

‘I _knew_ someone was going to make that unfunny joke eventually’, Vandevere said as the woman noticed his white coat.

‘Oh, and one more thing’, she said, ‘Your mind must have been completely _blanc_ in terms of deciding what colour to wear today.’

‘Ok’, Vandevere said, ‘Enough with the bilingual puns. Now if you will excuse me, I have something to see to at the tower.’

‘The tower, eh?’ the woman said, ‘No wonder you’re so _high_ up, financially speaking; I suppose that’s the explanation for the _power_ that comes with it as well.’

‘Gee, you’re a really _bright spark,_ aren’t you?’ Vandevere said, ‘Firstly, you’re absolutely correct, and secondly, no pun intended.’

‘Well, that’s _electrifying_ ’, the woman said, ‘Also, the pun came as a total _shock_.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BlueCoat is an obvious parody of JavaScript; the name was inspired by the French Army in centuries past wearing blue coats (and since my Vandevere is half-French...)


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Claudia and Marie visit Dreamland; Vandevere receives a letter from Claudia, both admit to Marie who her real father is.

At 11:30 the next morning, fifteen minutes after the morning show at the Colosseum, Baritone Bates gave Vandevere an envelope that someone had obviously lost on the way to give it to him.

‘It’s for you’, Mr. Bates said.

‘Thanks’, Vandevere said as he ripped the envelope open and unfolded the letter inside, ‘Where did you find this?’

‘It was on one of the stands after the show’, Mr. Bates said.

_‘Oh, my goodness!’_ Vandevere thought as he read the contents of the letter, _‘She’s finally come to visit!’_

‘So’, Collette said as she approached them, ‘What’s going on here?’

It was then that Vandevere folded the letter up and returned it to the envelope.

‘Oh, nothing’, he said while remembering the scandalous end to his three-day stay in Toulouse in 1899, ‘Just remembering the life I had as a young man of 24. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go to wipe the gunk off my cane.’

‘O…k?’ Mr. Bates said with a confused voice as he quickly exited the Colosseum while Collette had a slightly disgusted look on her face.

‘Hey, Collette’, Mr. Bates said, ‘What’s with the face?’

‘ _Ugh’_ , she said, ‘You really _don’t_ want to know…’

**Forty-five minutes later…**

‘Come on, Marie’, Claudia said to her 15-year old daughter, ‘We need to find my letter so I can give it to Mr. Vandevere!’

‘But I want to go on the Firecracker’, Marie said in protest, ‘Can’t it wait until later?’

‘No, Marie’, Claudia said as she began pulling her by the hand in the direction of the Colosseum, ‘I’m sure I had it with me when we were at the show nearly an hour ago.’

Meanwhile, Vandevere had just finished talking to the operator of the Sidewinder and was walking along the path when he nearly crashed into Claudia.

‘Sorry’, Claudia said before she looked up and saw who she had nearly collided with, ‘I didn’t see…’

‘Valiant?’ she asked, ‘Is that you?’

‘Uh, well, yes’, Vandevere replied, ‘Don’t worry, I got your letter, if that’s what you were worried about.’

‘Uh, Mum?’ Marie said, ‘Why did you want to give Mr. Vandevere the letter in the first place?’

‘Oh’, Claudia said, ‘Since you’re old enough to understand, I’ll tell you.’

‘But’, Vandevere said, ‘We’ll need to go to a private place first, like my office.’

‘Ok’, Marie and Claudia said, ‘You lead the way.’

**A few minutes later…**

‘Wow!’ Marie said in amazement as they walked down the corridor on the top floor of the tower and into a huge, elaborately decorated office with a large desk and swivel chair at the other end of the room in front of a huge floor to ceiling round window, ‘You have everything!’

 _‘Yes’,_ Claudia thought, _‘Just like you said you would one day.’_

‘Anyway’, Vandevere said as he closed the door, walked over to his chair and sat down, ‘Where were we?’

‘Oh’, Claudia said, ‘I was just about to tell Marie about why I wanted to give that letter to you.’

‘Now I remember’, Vandevere said as he turned to face Marie, ‘You see, that letter isn’t just an ordinary letter.’

‘What do you mean?’ Marie asked.

‘Marie’, Claudia replied, ‘Do you know who your father is?’

‘Um…Papa’s back home in Marseille while we’re on holiday’, Marie said.

‘Um…well, yes, the one you call Papa is back at home’, Claudia said, ‘However, he’s not your biological father.’

‘What?’ Marie asked in shock, ‘Who is, then?’

‘Marie’, Claudia replied, ‘He’s been here all along.’

‘What?’ Marie asked in shock and confusion, ‘I’m Mr. Vandevere’s daughter?’

‘Yes’, Vandevere admitted, ‘Your father’s the owner of Dreamland.’

‘I can’t believe it!’ Marie said with tears running down her face, ‘Why didn’t we stay together as a family then?’

‘Oh’, Vandevere said, ‘You see dear, I and your mother met in the spring of 1899 while she was on holiday with her older brother in Toulouse, my mother’s birth city. It was love at first sight; I wasn’t known as the “Silver Fox” for nothing; women fawned over me and men wanted to be like me.’

‘Anyway’, Claudia said, ‘My brother became concerned when I didn’t return to our hotel room on the last night of our holiday, However, he found me safe and well sleeping on a couch in the lobby on the ground floor the next morning before we went out for breakfast and to catch the next train back to Paris. A few weeks later, I started experiencing abdominal cramps and bouts of vomiting that didn’t seem to be receding, so my brother took me to the doctor. That’s when I got the shocking and joyous news that I was pregnant.’

‘Yes’, Vandevere said, ‘However, when her brother found out, he was furious when he remembered that we had met three days into the holiday.’

‘I know’, Claudia said before she faced Marie, ‘As soon as we returned home from the doctor, he vowed to “teach that reckless scallion a lesson” and sent a letter a while later stating that we were never to meet again.’

‘Gee’, Marie said, ‘I bet he’s really regretful for sending that letter now, especially since Dreamland opened over two years ago. Anyway, what day was I born?’

‘Ah, yes’, Claudia said, ‘You were born on December 31st, 1899. It was a joyous day for me especially and my new husband, your stepfather, John, since we had only been married three months prior, when I was six months pregnant with you.’


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A hotel guest is woken by the sound of the Rocket to the Moon roller-coaster; Vandevere has a strange dream and threatens to fire Pipsqueak, one of the technicians in the Tower.

At 5:45 the next morning, a young man who was sleeping in one of the rooms at the hotel above the restaurant across the road from Dreamland was woken up by the loud and repetitive “clickety-clack” sound of the chain-lift on the Rocket to the Moon roller-coaster.

 _‘Not again!’_ he thought while looking out the window before closing the curtains, _‘Something needs to be done about this!’_

**Meanwhile…**

‘Ah, Mr. Vandevere’, one of the security personnel said as they stood on the station platform of the roller-coaster, ‘The mechanic’s report says that the station brakes have been fixed after the near-disastrous breakdown last night.’

‘Thank goodness’, Vandevere said, ‘Anyway, it’s a good job we put the ride through a test run before opening at 8:00.’

A few minutes later, an elderly woman slowly made her way across the road from the hotel.

‘Ah, Mrs. Jenkins’, Vandevere said as he walked up to the gates, ‘How’s the hotel business going?’

‘That’s what I wanted to talk to you about’, Mrs. Jenkins said, ‘One of my guests, a young man who wishes to remain anonymous, notified me that he was woken up yet again by the sound of the Rocket to the Moon ride.’

‘Oh’, Vandevere said, ‘I am terribly sorry about that. However, the ride had to be tested to ensure safety before the park opens.’

‘I see’, Mrs. Jenkins said, ‘Well then, couldn’t you _at least_ go through testing at a slightly later time after everyone is awake please?’

‘Yes, Mam’, Vandevere said when he gave her a discount voucher, ‘Oh, and for all the trouble I caused that young man, please give him this voucher for 10 percent off park admission for today only.’

‘Thank you’, Mrs. Jenkins said before she walked away, ‘Have a nice day.’

‘You too’, Vandevere said before he turned around, only to see the light-blue cladded guard standing with a confused look on his face.

‘What?’ he asked.

‘Well, that was unusual for you; giving a discount voucher to her for free’, the guard replied.

Both chuckled at this response for a few seconds.

‘Get back to work’, Vandevere said coldly before heading off for breakfast, causing the guard to scratch his head in confusion before resuming his duties.

Right after breakfast that morning, Vandevere fell asleep at his desk and began having a strange dream.

_‘Where am I?’ he thought before he noticed a big sign in front of him and read it._

_‘Goodness me’, he said, ‘I’m in Norrisville, home of the Norrisville Ninja!’_

_While he was walking down the main street, Tokomune Street, a street kid snatched his cane away from him and ran down the footpath._

_‘HEY!’ Vandevere shouted as green smoke started billowing down a nearby alleyway, ‘Come back here with my cane, you little slimy brat!’_

_In response, the boy turned around to face him._

_‘What’cha going to do, old geezer?’ he jeered, ‘You’ll never be able to catch me!’_

_Suddenly, Vandevere was enveloped in the green smoke from the alleyway and transformed into a giant yellow-eyed black rhinoceros beetle with the ability to shoot bolts of electricity from the horn._

_‘Uh-oh…’ the boy said while shaking in fear after nearly being hit by one of these bolts, causing people to scream and run away, ‘I s…suppose this is y-yours t-then.’_

_‘GET OUT!!’ Vandevere screamed before he scooped the boy up and flung him down the alleyway before the Ninja showed up._

_‘Smokebomb!’ the Ninja said, only to be hit by an arc of electricity before collapsing._

_‘SOD OFF YOU PATHETIC…’ Vandevere shouted before the Ninja cut his cane in half, de-stanking him._

_‘At least I’ve turned off this problem at the mains’, the Ninja said, ‘Being hit by that arc of electricity most certainly came as a real shock.’_

‘AAAHHH!’ Vandevere shrieked when he fell out of his chair after waking up, ‘What the hell happened?’

He then glanced at the clock in the corner and realised that it was half an hour past opening time.

‘Oh, my goodness!’ he said as he stood up, hastily walked to the elevator and opened the doors, ‘The gates!’

**In the Control Room…**

‘ _Oh my…’_ Vandevere thought with disbelief upon seeing the three technicians sleeping in their chairs or on the floor, _‘Those **boneheads**! I’ll have to open the gates myself then.’_

However, while walking over to the leaver to open the gates, he tripped over the technician sleeping on the floor, causing a loud crash as he landed within inches of the leaver.

‘What was that?’ the technician, Pipsqueak, said as he opened his eyes, only to see Vandevere staring at him with a creepy, nearly cross-eyed expression, causing him to yelp in shock, ‘AAHHH!’

‘You bird-brained idiot!!’ Vandevere said as he stood up, ‘I tripped over you while you were sleeping on the floor!!’

‘Sorry, Mr. Vandevere’, Pipsqueak said before being cut off.

‘Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but your little game of “Sorry” **won’t** save you this time!’ Vandevere said, ‘Now, come over and open the gates; we’re half an hour past opening.’

‘But the leaver’s right behind you on the panel’, Pipsqueak said, ‘Couldn’t you just pull it yourself for once?’

‘I’ll tell you what’, Vandevere said, ‘Either you come over here and do as **I** say, or you’ll be fired!’

‘You **can’t** fire me!’ Pipsqueak said as he walked over to the panel, ‘I’m the head technician!’

‘Oh, boo-hoo’, Vandevere said mockingly, ‘At least there are still these two other sleepyheads in here to replace you, _if_ the need should arise.’

‘Fine’, Pipsqueak said as he pulled the leaver downwards, while thinking, _‘There, you big, stupid baby; the gates are open.’_

‘Thanks, Pipsqueak’, Vandevere said as a crowd of people began walking through the now-open gateway, ‘Now, it’s time to wake these two up.’

‘Mr. Vandevere’, Pipsqueak said, ‘I wouldn’t…’

It was then that Vandevere turned the alarm on, causing the other two technicians to jump in shock at the loud and sudden noise.

‘AHHH!’ they screamed as they clambered to see what was causing the alarm, only for Vandevere to turn it off again.

‘Good morning, rise and shine’, he said, ‘It’s time to start the workday.’


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Employees complain of being overworked with little sleep; Vandevere punishes Bertie severely for punching his classmate at school.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning: Graphic depiction of child abuse; Bertie is caned repeatedly and shouted at.

‘I can’t believe this’, Pipsqueak said to Collette and some of the other performers backstage in the Colosseum after the afternoon show, ‘Constantly working long hours, day after day; we’re run _completely_ ragged up in the tower managing the electrical system!’

‘Tell us about it’, some of the performers said, ‘We’ve got an endless cycle of rehearsal and performing, just so the crowds can be entertained; the exemption being Collette, of course.’

‘True’, Collette said, ‘I do have Tuesdays and Fridays off, However, I still find Mr. Vandevere to be a bit on the “creepy” side, if you know what I mean…’

‘Speaking of creepy, you’d be glad you weren’t in the tower this morning when he tripped over me’, Pipsqueak said, ‘The first thing I saw when I woke up a few seconds later due to the noise was him glaring directly at me with an almost cross-eyed expression which scared the pants off of me. I apologised to him immediately afterwards, only for him to threaten to fire me.’

‘Not to mention that he woke us up with that ear-splitting alarm’, the other technicians said, ‘Seriously, we had only managed to get _three_ hours sleep after the event last night when the park was open into the small hours of the morning.’

‘Yes’, Collette said, ‘Those stupid VIPs kept me awake all night, even though I’ve got a performance later tonight which I haven’t been able to rehearse for since I haven’t had enough sleep!’

‘I’m guessing that it must have been a nightmare for the guests at the hotel across the road with the light and noise’, one of the clowns said, ‘No-one in their right mind could sleep through all of that.’

‘What’s _this_ I’m hearing over here?’ Vandevere asked as he approached the group.

‘Oh, good afternoon, Mr. Vandevere, sir’, Pipsqueak and the others said, ‘It’s just that…we…about last night…’

‘What about last night?’ Vandevere asked before he kissed Collette’s hand.

 _‘Ugh’_ , Collette thought in disgust, _‘I wish he wouldn’t be compelled to do that_ every _time we see each other!’_

‘Well’, Pipsqueak replied, ‘We were talking a few minutes ago and hereby all agree…that we are, um…well…uh…overworked.’

‘WHAT!?’ Vandevere shouted in response to this accusation, causing everyone to jump in shock, ‘Is _that_ what this was all about, Pipsqueak? WAS IT!?’

‘Um…w-well…yes, Mr. V-Vandevere’, Pipsqueak said nervously.

‘Well then, Pipsqueak, let me tell you all…that I DO **NOT** OVERWORK **MY** EMPLOYEES!!’

‘Uh…Mr. Vandevere…’ Collette said, ‘I don’t think that shouting the roof off the Colosseum is going to help anything.’

‘Perhaps you are right, ma Cherie’, Vandevere said, ‘Besides, you’ve never been overworked since Dreamland first opened, anyway.’

‘Sorry to interrupt’, Pipsqueak said, ‘But I believe that’s because the public perception is that she’s your girlfriend and overworking her wouldn’t be a good thing now, would it?’

‘Did I give you permission to speak, Mr. Clever-Chops?’ Vandevere asked.

‘No, Mr. Vandevere’, Pipsqueak replied.

‘Well then, why don’t you and your friends just SHUT UP and go back to the tower!’ Vandevere said.

‘Sir, yes, sir!’ Pipsqueak said after a short pause before he and the other two technicians marched off.

‘Well then’, Vandevere said, ‘That gets rid of those three shoobs, hopefully for the rest of the day.’

‘You _can’t_ treat your employees like that!’ Collette said while the others looked at him with shocked expressions, ‘It’s completely unethical!’

‘Unethical?’ Vandevere asked with a confused voice, ‘What does _that_ mean?’

‘Oh, my goodness’, Collette said as she facepalmed, ‘You’re not the brightest spark around, are you?’

‘Anyway, it’s time to get back to work’, Vandevere said before he disappeared down the corridor, ‘See you all later!’

However, just as Vandevere reached the top of the stairs in the corridor, a somewhat distracted Bertie who had been running in the opposite direction crashed into him, causing him to fall back down.

‘Oof!’ he said repeatedly as he bounced down the stairs before landing in a heap at the bottom, ‘Ouch.’

‘Oh, my goodness, Dad!’ Bertie said as he rushed down, ‘I’m so sorry; I didn’t see you until it was too late.’

‘Thanks, Bertie’, Vandevere said before he stood up, ‘Wait a minute. Why aren’t you at school? It’s only 1:15.’

‘Oh’, Bertie said, ‘It’s nothing, really.’

It was then that Vandevere noticed a folded piece of paper in Bertie’s hand.

‘What’s that?’ he asked.

‘What’s what?’ Bertie asked.

‘Don’t play dumb, boy!’ Vandevere said, ‘Now, give me that paper in your hand!’

‘Um…no thank you…you wouldn’t want to know’, Bertie said.

‘ **WHAT** did you just say!?’ Vandevere shouted in anger.

‘I…I said…that…y-you wouldn’t…um…w-want to r-read the l-letter’, Bertie said nervously.

‘And **why** wouldn’t I want to see it?’ Vandevere asked.

‘Ok, ok!’ Bertie replied after a few long seconds, ‘I give up! You can read the stupid letter! Just take it from me!’

‘Right then’, Vandevere said before he unfolded the letter and began reading it, which infuriated him greatly.

‘BERTIE J. DAWSON!!’ he screamed, ‘ **What** is the meaning of _this_!?’

‘Look, I’m sorry!’ Bertie sobbed, ‘I didn’t mean to knock him out!’

‘Well, according to the letter, you punched Gerald in the face in a fit of rage after a scuffle on the basketball court during the lunch break!’ Vandevere shouted, ‘And now you’re **suspended** for the rest of the week!’

‘It’s all Mrs. Darcy’s fault’, Bertie sobbed before quietly muttering, ‘Stupid old bitch!’

‘What was **that**!?’ Vandevere shouted, ‘Knocking poor Gerald out in a fit of rage was bad enough, but _insulting_ the principal is a step too far, Mister!’

‘But it’s the truth’, Bertie sobbed before he poked his tongue out.

‘Go to your room, Bertie!’ Vandevere ordered, ‘NOW!!’

‘You’re not the boss of me, blue-eyed twit!’ Bertie remarked.

‘THAT’S IT!!’ Vandevere shouted, ‘You have five minutes to get up to your room, or there’ll be trouble!! And there’ll be **no** going on any rides for the rest of the day!’

‘Ok, Dad’, Bertie sobbed before he began heading to the tower.

‘Hello, Bertie’, the guard in the base of the tower said as soon as he walked through the doors, ‘I hear that you were suspended from school for the rest of the week for punching another student in the face during an altercation at lunchtime.’

‘Yes’, Bertie said as he walked to the elevator, ‘Dad’s not happy about it at all and has sent me to my room.’

It was then that an enraged Vandevere burst through the doors.

‘And where do you think you’re going!?’ he asked.

‘I’m just g-going to the…um…e-elevator now’, Bertie said nervously as he turned around, ‘I’ll be up t-there in a minute.’

‘No, you’re not!’ Vandevere shouted, ‘As punishment for what you did today, you’re going to use the stairs!’

‘But the stairs take ages to climb!’ Bertie said.

‘Well then’, Vandevere said as he walked over to the elevator and pressed the button, ‘Maybe you can use that time to think about what you have done! Anyway, I’ll be waiting up in my office for you.’

‘Ok, Dad’, Bertie said before he began to climb the stairs.

_‘What’s going to happen to me?’_ Bertie thought nervously as he climbed higher and higher while mentally processing a plethora of horrific events that could take place in the office, _‘Whatever he has in store for me, I’ll just have to accept it.’_

Finally, after three long minutes, he walked nervously down the corridor on the top floor and knocked on the door of Vandevere’s office.

‘I know it’s you, Bertie!’ a tiny speaker attached to the door blared, ‘Come in please and we’ll talk about today!’

 _‘This is it’_ , Bertie thought as he swallowed nervously and opened the door, _‘He’s going to kill me!’_

On the other side of the room, Vandevere was sitting at his desk in front of the giant round window with an angry expression on his face.

 _‘Aaahhh!’_ Bertie thought upon looking up at him.

‘Close the door please and sit in the chair here’, Vandevere ordered.

‘Yes, Dad’, Bertie said as he followed the instructions like a robot.

‘Now’, Vandevere said, ‘What you did today at school was very wrong, you know that, right?’

‘Yes, Dad’, Bertie said.

‘And it is a great **embarrassment** to me **and** the company to have **my** adopted son **suspended** from school for injuring another student!’ Vandevere shouted.

‘Look, I said I was sorry earlier’, Bertie sobbed as Vandevere took his cane out of its holder on the wall behind him.

‘Put your hands on the desk’, he ordered.

‘Ok’, Bertie sobbed nervously as he put his hands down.

‘Turn them over, boy!’ Vandevere shouted.

‘Sorry’, Bertie sobbed before he turned his hands so that the palms were facing the ceiling.

‘Right then!’ Vandevere said as he lifted the cane up, ‘Now for your punishment!’

 _‘Oh boy’_ , Bertie thought before his hands were painfully struck a total of five times, causing him to begin crying.

‘Wipe those tears away, boy!’ Vandevere said, ‘Be a man!’

‘But…it….h-hurts!’ Bertie sobbed.

‘Good’, Vandevere said, ‘Maybe you’ll now take this into account **before** reacting in this way again!’

‘Ok, ok!’ Bertie sobbed, ‘I get it!’

‘And don’t you **dare** think you’ve got away without apologising!’ Vandevere shouted, ‘You’re coming with me on Tuesday to school so **you** can apologise personally to Mrs. Darcy and Gerald, all while I’m publicly **humiliated** because of this!’

‘Yes, Dad’, Bertie sobbed as he stood up.

‘Now, go to your room and stay there until dinnertime!’ Vandevere ordered.

‘Ok’, Bertie sobbed as he walked across the room to his door, opened it and closed it behind him just as Collette walked into the office.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The "Mr. Clever Chops" part in the chapter is a reference to an episode of Are You Being Served? - an old comedy about a department store.


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vandevere and Bertie make amends; Bertie apologises to his classmate and school for what he did; the school is invited to Dreamland for a day.

‘Hey, ma Cherie’, Vandevere said calmly, ‘What’s up?’

‘Enough of the smoothness and sweet talk, Mr. Vandevere’, Collette said, ‘I’ve got a very important query regarding my performance later tonight.’

‘Ok’, Vandevere said, ‘What is it?’

‘Well, I haven’t been able to rehearse properly due to the VIP event last night’, Collette said, ‘Is there any way that it could be postponed until tomorrow evening?’

‘Um…’ Vandevere said, ‘Ok. It’s not as if many people wanted to see it tonight anyway, and besides, you need to rest and rehearse, so I suppose that the Colosseum could be closed earlier than usual.’

‘Thanks, Mr. Vandevere’, Collette said as she stood up, ‘I knew you could figure something out.’

‘Anytime’, Vandevere said, ‘Be seeing you around, then.’

‘Yes’, Collette said before she left the office, ‘Until then, au revoir.’

‘Au revoir to you too’, Vandevere said.

**A few hours later…**

‘Bertie’, Vandevere said when he opened the door to his room, ‘It’s time for dinner.’

‘Thanks’, Bertie said as they walked over to the kitchenette behind another door on the opposite side of the room.

Tonight’s dinner menu is in front of you on the table’, Vandevere said when they sat in the chairs.

‘Thanks, Dad’, Bertie said as he made his choice and separated it from the rest of the menu using the perforated lines before feeding it into a slot on the wall behind him.

‘So, while we’re waiting for that to cook…’ Bertie began before being cut off.

‘Oh, I believe it’s already ready’, Vandevere said, ‘You see, I’ve recently programmed our most frequently chosen meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner into the robots in the kitchen beside us.’

It was then that a couple of silver cylindrical objects sped through two different pneumatic pipes from the kitchen and stopped above the table.

‘Right’, Vandevere said as he took one of them and put it in front of him, ‘Dinner is served.’

After what seemed like forever, Tuesday morning came around.

‘Ah’, Bertie sighed as he woke up, stretched and got out of bed, ‘Time for breakfast.’

He put his slippers on, walked over to his bathroom and washed his hands before opening the bedroom door and walking into the office where Vandevere was already sitting in his chair as the sun shone through the window.

‘Morning, Dad’, Bertie said, ‘Just going to the kitchen for breakfast.’

‘Son’, Vandevere said, ‘It’s almost 8:30 and we’ve got to be at the school by 9:30.’

‘Oh’, Bertie said when he remembered what was said a few days back, ‘I could just take one of those muesli bars and a piece of cheese with me then, since I don’t start school again until tomorrow.’

‘Ok’, Vandevere said, ‘Suit yourself. Just be sure to have something to drink before you get ready to go.’

‘Ok, Dad’, Bertie said before he walked into the kitchen.

**Twenty minutes later…**

DING! DING!

‘Right’, Vandevere said as he and Bertie stepped out of the elevator at the base of the tower before heading out the doors, ‘Time to go.’

As if on cue, Sotheby showed up and directed them to the dark green Rolls-Royce parked in front of the Colosseum.

‘Ok’, Vandevere said to Bertie as Sotheby closed the door, ‘Have you decided on what to say to Mrs. Darcy and Gerald?’

‘Yes’, Bertie said, ‘I came up with something last night.’

‘Good’, Vandevere said just as Sotheby climbed in and the engine revved.

‘To the school, please’, Bertie said before the car drove towards and through the gateway onto the street.

Meanwhile, at the school, the second-grade class was in the middle of a maths test when one of the girls saw a shiny, expensive-looking car with black-tinted windows pull up outside.

‘Mr. Gillton!’ she said as he and the other kids turned to look out the window and gasped with awe and excitement, ‘What’s going on?’

It was then that the principal, Mrs. Darcy, opened the door to the room and walked in with an important announcement.

‘Good morning, Mrs. Darcy’, Mr. Gillton said as the class stood up in respect, ‘What brings you here?’

‘I’ve just got word from my secretary, Ms. Hardy, to tell all of the classes to come down to the foyer to meet a very special visitor’, Mrs. Darcy said.

‘Ok’, Mr. Gillton said before he turned to face the class, ‘Right, boys and girls, follow me and Mrs. Darcy in a single file downstairs and into the foyer.’

‘Yes, Mr. Gillton’, the class said as they formed a single line and followed Mr. Gillton and Mrs. Darcy out the door and down the hall.

**In the foyer…**

‘Why are we out here again?’ a boy from the fifth-grade class asked his friend, Joe.

‘I don’t know, Mark’, Joe replied, ‘Probably something stupid, as usual.’

‘Psst…’ one of their classmates, a girl named Ethel said, ‘I heard that it was to do with a fancy car pulling up outside.’

‘What would _you_ know about cars?’ Mark and Joe said, ‘You’re a girl!’

‘Boys!’ their teacher, Mrs. Trollop, said sternly, ‘That’s enough of that for one day.’

‘Sorry, Mrs. Trollop’, Mark and Joe said.

A few seconds later, a man in a black suit and tie opened the doors wide and rolled out a short red-coloured carpet.

‘Ohhh’, Joe whispered to Mark, ‘Whoever has come to visit, they must be important, like a Broadway star, perhaps?’

‘ _Or a movie star’_ , Joe thought.

‘Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls’, the man in the black suit and tie, Sotheby, said as he gestured to the doorway, ‘May I present the owner of New York’s playground, Dreamland…Mr. V.A Vandevere!’

‘Sweet cheese!’ Mark said in amazement as the elaborately dressed tycoon walked into the foyer, cane in hand, ‘It’s really _him_ …America’s favourite tycoon!’

‘ _Wow!’_ Mr. Gillton thought as his class gasped.

‘Oh, my!’ Mrs. Darcy and Ms. Hardy said before they fainted.

‘Could you get the smelling salts please?’ Mr. Gillton whispered to the janitor, who was standing behind him, ‘Mrs. Darcy and Ms. Hardy have just fainted in shock.’

‘Sure thing’, the janitor said before he marched off to the closet on the left-hand side of the foyer and returned with the smelling salts.

‘Thank you all!’ Vandevere said as he gave a quick curtsy, ‘However, the main reason I am here today is so my son can say something important to Mrs. Darcy and his classmate, Gerald.’

‘What??’ Mrs. Darcy asked as she sprang up from the odour of the smelling salts along with what Vandevere had just said, ‘You’ve b-brought B-Bertie to…a-apologise to me a-and Gerald??’

‘Yes’, Vandevere replied before lowering his voice down to a whisper, ‘Between you and me, we decided it was the best thing to do.’

‘Oh, Mr. Vandevere’, Mrs. Darcy said while blushing, ‘Your voice is so smooth!’

Unfortunately, Mark and Joe made a stupid remark upon hearing this.

‘Oooohhhh’, they said loudly, ‘Looks like Mrs. Darcy is infatuated!’

‘Be quiet, Mark and Joe, or you’ll be in detention at lunchtime!’ Mrs. Trollop snapped.

‘Yes, Mrs. Trollop’, the two boys said, ‘Sorry, Mrs. Trollop.’

‘Sotheby’, Vandevere said, ‘Please go and fetch Bertie from the car.’

‘Yes, sir’, Sotheby said as he walked outside and down the steps.

‘Bertie’, he said when he opened the car door, ‘It is time.’

‘Ok’, Bertie said before he got out, climbed the stairs and walked into the foyer where everyone was standing.

‘Um, good morning, everyone’, he said, ‘I just wanted to say…’

 _‘This is it’_ , Vandevere thought disappointedly, _‘They’re going to maul **me** , the greatest person to ever live, with laughter!’_

However, Bertie had come down with a bad case of stage fright and forgot what to say.

‘Um…I just wanted to say…uh…’ he said before he ran outside.

 _‘Oh, for crying out loud!’_ Vandevere thought as he mentally facepalmed.

‘I’ll get him, sir’, Sotheby said before he followed Bertie outside, leaving Vandevere alone and humiliated while some of the kids chuckled quietly before a girl, Miyako, shouted from the back of the foyer near the stairs, ‘Oy! What’s all _this_ about, eh??’

‘MIYAKO!!’ her teacher, Mrs. Barnes, snapped, ‘You’ve just earned yourself a lunchtime detention, Missus!’

‘Dou sumimasen, Mrs. Barnes’, Miyako said before she realised, ‘I mean…I’m terribly sorry.’

‘Well, you’re _still_ going to be in detention, I’m afraid’, Mrs. Barnes said.

‘Bertie, listen’, Sotheby said as he approached the nervous seven-year old, ‘You need to go back inside and finish what you were saying.’

‘But there are so many people in there’, Bertie said, ‘I wasn’t expecting to apologise in front of _the whole school_!’

‘You can do it, Bertie’, Sotheby said, ‘Just imagine that the only people in the foyer are Mrs. Darcy and Gerald.’

‘Ok then’, Bertie said before they returned inside.

‘So, Bertie’, Mrs. Darcy said, ‘What do you want to share with us?’

‘Well’, Bertie said before he finally admitted what he had done the previous Wednesday, ‘I’m sorry, Mrs. Darcy and Gerald, for what happened last week on the basketball court. I realise what I did was wrong and unjust to not just Gerald, but to everyone.’

Immediately after the short speech, the foyer gradually filled with applause before Mrs. Darcy thanked him.

‘Well done, Bertie’, Sotheby said to him a few seconds later.

‘You did it, son’, Vandevere said, ‘That wasn’t so hard, was it.’

‘No’, Bertie said before he realised what had happened a few minutes prior when he and Sotheby had left the room, ‘But I humiliated you by leaving the foyer a few minutes ago.’

‘Dah, it’s ok’, Vandevere said, ‘I’m just glad that you apologised.’

‘Thanks, Dad’, Bertie said.

It was then that Vandevere approached Mrs. Darcy to talk about something.

‘Hey, Mrs. Darcy’, he said, ‘As a kind gesture for what has just taken place, I want to give you this.’

‘What is it?’ Mrs. Darcy asked when she took the envelope out of Vandevere’s hand.

‘It’s for the school’, Vandevere replied before he winked at her.

‘Oh, my…’ Mrs. Darcy said while blushing and opening the envelope, ‘I’m absolutely famished!’

However, she wasn’t prepared for the surprise inside the envelope as she pulled it out.

‘I can’t believe it!’ she said when she looked at the contents of the envelope, ‘I just _have_ to tell everybody!’

**A few minutes later…**

‘Everyone, may I have your attention please!?’ Mrs. Darcy said just as everyone was heading back to their classrooms or offices, ‘Just before you leave, I have an announcement to make.’

‘Ok’, everyone said before Mrs. Darcy held up a special school voucher.

‘What’s that?’ Mr. Gillton asked.

‘Mr. Vandevere has been generous enough to invite the entire school to Dreamland on the first Thursday next month for the whole day!’ Mrs. Darcy joyously replied.

‘HOORAY!!!’ all the students shouted in joy before clapping.


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The whole school is excited about spending a day at Dreamland; Jacobsen, one of Bertie's classmates, is disappointed when he can't go; Mrs. Darcy is further impressed by Vandevere; Vandevere asks Mrs. Darcy to marry him; Vandevere is caught by Mrs. Darcy's husband.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The longest chapter so far; there's a lot of reading.

‘Finally’, one of Bertie’s classmates, Jacobsen, said to his friend, Kenneth, at lunchtime on the first Monday of the following month, ‘Only three more sleeps until Thursday.’

‘Yes, I know’, Kenneth said before he took a bite out of his sandwich, ‘I’m excited about the trip, aren’t you?’

‘Heck yes!’ Jacobsen said, ‘Just think about it; you, me and the whole school will be spending the _entire day_ in **New York’s playground**!’

‘I’ve heard that the Colosseum in the centre of the park is huge!’ Ethel said after she swallowed a mouthful of dark chocolate and banana cookie, ‘And it houses the most elaborate circus acts from around the world!’

‘Exactly’, Kenneth said, ‘Rumour has it that the legendary “Queen of the Heavens”, Collette Marchant, performs there.’

‘Hold on’, Jacobsen said upon recognising the name from a film he had seen recently with his parents and two older brothers, ‘She’s been in a few highly popular films as well.’

‘Yes’, Kenneth said, ‘A lot of people are surprised to discover that Vandevere Enterprises, the company behind Dreamland, has a film production and distribution arm named Vandevere Films, also known in French as Cinéma de Vândévere.’

‘I’m looking forward to watching the sea-lions perform at 11:25 on Thursday morning’, Ethel said, ‘They’re my favourite animal in the world!’

‘Yeah’, Jacobsen said, ‘All the animal acts are amazing.’

‘Anyway’, Jacobsen said as he and the others closed their lunchboxes and stood up as Mrs. Darcy rang a hand-held bell while walking around, ‘It’s time for me and Kenneth to get to class.’

‘Ok then’, Ethel said, ‘See you around.’

‘Us too’, Jacobsen and Kenneth said before they disappeared into the sea of students flowing into the building.

‘Thank you, Mrs. Darcy’, Mr Gillton said when she gave him a small stack of papers, ‘I’ll be sure to hand these out to everyone except Bertie.’

‘Thanks’, Mrs. Darcy said before she continued down the hall to the next room.

‘Right, everyone’, Mr. Gillton said when he placed the stack on Kenneth’s desk, ‘These are permission slips for your parents to read and sign as authorisation for you to go to Dreamland on Thursday. Please take one and pass the stack around so everyone gets one. And don’t forget, the slips must be handed in by Wednesday morning at 10:00.’

‘Ok’, Kenneth said as he took a slip off the top and passed it to Jacobsen, who did the same before passing it to Gerald.

Before long, everyone in the room had their own slip to take home.

‘Right then’, Mr. Gillton said, ‘Back to what we were doing. Now, if everyone could please open their books to Chapter Five, we can begin today’s History lesson.’

**At 4:15 that afternoon…**

‘Mum, Dad’, Jacobsen said while sitting on the rocking chair in the lounge, ‘I’ve got a permission slip for you to sign.’

‘Ok’, Jacobsen’s father, Herbie, said, ‘Where is it?’

‘It’s right here’, Jacobsen said as he gave him the slip.

‘Oh’, Herbie said a few seconds later after reading it, ‘You lucky thing. I’ll just show Mum.’

‘I’ve already seen it from over here’, Herbie’s wife, Ruby, said while cleaning the bookshelf, ‘Sign it; he deserves to go, especially when it’s free!’

‘Ok’, Herbie said as he took a pen out of the pen tin on the table and signed on the dotted line next to Ruby’s signature, ‘There, all done.’

‘Thanks’, Jacobsen said.

‘Aw, man’, one of Jacobsen’s older brothers, Herbie Jr., said when he saw the slip, ‘I wish my school was going.’

‘Oh, well’, Herbie said, ‘Maybe one day, when we have some spare money and time, we’ll all go.’

‘I had been planning on going with you all during the weekend, until Howard ruined the plan by insisting that we go to see The _Dame Who Dared_ at the local nickelodeon instead.’

‘Now, Herbie Jr.’, Herbie said, ‘Be nice to your older brother; he’s a real action film buff and fan of Collette Marchant.’

‘I suppose you’re right’, Herbie Jr. said disappointedly, ‘I really need to learn to share my money, don’t I?’

‘Yes’, Herbie said.

**That Wednesday at 10:45 a.m.…**

‘I can’t believe that the trip is tomorrow!’ Jacobsen said with excitement, ‘Finally, I’ll be able to ride my first roller-coaster, now that I’ve had a growth spurt during the last week; last time I was there with my family a year ago to celebrate my older brother Howard’s birthday, I was stuck with Mum in the kiddie rides section of Jollyopolis, while Dad, Howard and Herbie Jr. had a blast on the roller-coasters, log flume, Loop-O-Plane, Highway Hijinks, Nightmare Island and many other rides and attractions.’

‘I’ve heard Nightmare Island is terrifying, especially at night, with the smokescreen and the sounds and shadows of scary-looking animals behind barred fences’, Kenneth said.

‘Oh, yes. It is’, Jacobsen said, ‘Only Howard and Dad were brave enough to enter while Herbie Jr. stayed outside and waited for them to return. Even then, they were both scared out of their wits, even if it was just for fun.’

‘Yes, I know what you mean’, Kenneth replied, ‘I’ve heard a rumour that Mr. Vandevere is a fan of scary and dark things, as is evident in his horror film, _The Creeping Cat_.’

‘Speaking of that, when I think about what the outside and inside of Nightmare Island looked like according to what my brothers and Dad told me, it seems to have been at least partially inspired by Gothic artwork and culture’, Jacobsen said.

‘Yes’, Kenneth said, ‘I’m looking forward to tomorrow.’

‘Me too’, Jacobsen said.

However, at 9:30 that night, across the country in Colorado Springs, Jacobsen’s grandmother, Betsie, collapsed and died suddenly while returning to her bedroom from the bathroom.

RING! RING!

‘Who could that be this early in the morning?’ Ruby said as she ran down the hall to the phone, ‘It’s only 7:30!’

‘Hello?’ she asked then she picked the ear and mouth-piece up, ‘This is Ruby Johnson speaking.’

‘Ah yes, good morning, Ruby’, the person on the other end of the line, Jacobsen’s grandfather and Betsie’s husband, Kieran, said, ‘Kieran here. I’ve got some sad news about Betsie.’

‘What is it?’ Ruby said before she remembered, ‘Oh, no. She didn’t-’

‘I’m afraid so’, Kieran sighed sadly, ‘It happened at approximately 9:30 local time. Anyway, you’ll need to bring the family to Colorado for the funeral, which is in three days.’

‘Ok’, Ruby said, ‘I’ll need to get a train timetable from down at the station.’

‘Well, you’ll be pleased to know that I’ve already gone through the trouble of looking for the next departure and arrival times for you this morning’, Kieran said, ‘Anyway, the next passenger train arrives in Colorado Springs tomorrow night at 11:45.’

‘Ok’, Ruby said as she wrote this on a notepad, ‘When do we need to depart here then?’

‘Well’, Kieran said, ‘Since the journey from New York to Colorado Springs takes approximately a day and a half, you’ll need to be at the station and ready to depart by 11:00 this morning at the latest.’

It was then that Ruby remembered the school trip to Dreamland that was leaving the school at 9:15 that morning.

‘Hold on a minute’, she said, ‘Is there another train that we could take tomorrow? It’s just that Jacobsen has something on at school today.’

‘Hm…let me see…’ Kieran said before he read the timetable, to no avail, ‘Hm, unfortunately, tomorrow’s train from New York won’t arrive until a few hours after the funeral, due to a day-long stopover in Tennessee, so I’m afraid that you’ll need to cancel or postpone the school event and take this morning’s train.’

‘Ok’, Ruby sighed, ‘We’ll see you tomorrow night.’

‘Mum!’ Jacobsen said as he ran down the hall with excitement and sat in the rocking chair, ‘I need plenty of energy if I’m going to ride my first roller-coaster today!’

‘What’s wrong, Mum?’ he asked when he noticed the sad expression on her face.

‘Jacobsen, I know you’ve been looking forward to this trip to Dreamland all week, but I’m afraid that you can’t go after all’, Ruby replied.

‘What??’ Jacobsen asked, ‘Why??’

‘You know that your grandmother had a host of health problems, right?’ Ruby replied, ‘Well, she passed away suddenly last night, so we have to be at the station by 11:00 this morning to catch the train to Colorado Springs, since tomorrow’s train won’t get there until the funeral is already over, due to a day-long stopover.’

‘I can’t believe it!’ Jacobsen said with tears in his eyes, ‘I was so looking forward to today.’

‘I’m so sorry, son’, Ruby said as she hugged him, ‘It’s just that these things happen unexpectedly sometimes. Anyway, I’ll phone Ms. Hardy right now to tell her to notify Mrs. Darcy that you won’t be going.’

‘Ok’, Jacobsen sobbed as Ruby walked back to the phone and connected to the switchboard before being connected to Ms. Hardy’s office.

‘Hello?’ she said, ‘This is Ms. Hardy speaking.’

‘Oh, hello’, Ruby said, ‘This is Ruby Johnson, Jacobsen’s mother.’

‘Good morning, Ruby’, Ms. Hardy said, ‘How are you?’

‘I’m good, thank you’, Ruby said, ‘Now, about the trip today, Jacobsen unfortunately won’t be able to make it, since his grandmother unexpectedly passed away last night and we need to take the 11:10 train this morning to get to Colorado Springs in time for the funeral.’

‘I understand’, Ms. Hardy said, ‘I’m so sorry about what has happened in your family. Anyway, I’ll notify Mrs. Darcy as soon as she arrives at 8:00.’

‘Thanks’, Ruby said before she hung up, ‘Bye.’

‘Right then’, Ruby said at 10:30 as she and the rest of the family stood outside the front door with five suitcases while she locked up, ‘Time to go.’

 _‘Ok, I suppose’,_ Jacobsen thought disappointedly as a taxi pulled up in front of them.

**Twenty-eight minutes later…**

‘Finally’, Herbie said just as the train pulled in to the station, ‘The train has arrived, so bring your cases down to be loaded into the luggage car.’

After the cases had been loaded on and all the passengers were seated in the carriages, the train moved out of the station and headed south.

During the first minute of the journey, Jacobsen looked out the window and saw Dreamland in the distance.

 _‘That should have been me today’_ , he thought disappointedly, _‘I would have probably been on my first roller-coaster by now had my grandmother not died last night.’_

**Meanwhile, at Dreamland…**

‘What a beautiful mid-spring morning it’s been’, Ms. Hardy said to Mrs. Trollop and Miyako while they were queuing up for the Ferris Wheel, ‘How are you liking the day so far?’

‘It’s been excellent!’ Miyako said, ‘I wish that we had a place like this in Norrisville.’

‘Yes’, Mrs. Trollop said, ‘However, we’ll have to be in the Colosseum and seated by 11:23 in order to watch the sea-lions perform.’

‘Goodness, I had completely forgotten about that!’ Ms. Hardy said before the exited the queue, ‘Coming, Miyako?’

‘No thanks’, Miyako said, ‘I’d rather stay and go on the Ferris Wheel.’

‘Ok then’, Ms. Hardy said, ‘Suit yourself.’

Meanwhile, Mrs. Darcy was standing on the left-hand side of an arc-shaped light brown wooden bridge spanning a pond while watching the fish swimming under the surface.

 _‘Time to go’_ , she thought before she faced north and looked up at the tower that loomed overhead.

 _‘Whoa!’_ she thought, _‘Dreamland Tower is even taller than I imagined! Anyway, I best be off to the Colosseum.’_

However, before she could move, she thought she saw a very faint, dark figure appear through the round window at the top of the tower before disappearing a few seconds later.

 _‘Hold on a minute!’_ she thought, _‘Was that…’_

‘Mrs. Darcy!’ Mrs. Trollop said as she and Ms. Hardy were walking past, ‘It’s time to come to the Colosseum for the show in ten minutes!’

 _‘Hm…’_ Mrs. Darcy thought as she walked with Mrs. Trollop and Ms. Hardy and continued towards the Colosseum, _‘I wonder…’_

‘That was spectacular, wasn’t it?’ Mrs. Trollop said forty-five minutes later as she, Ms. Hardy and Mrs. Darcy descended from their seats and walked toward the main doors.

‘Yes’, Mr. Gillton said when he joined them.

‘Anyway, we still have the rest of the afternoon to enjoy’, Ms. Hardy said, ‘Besides, it’s time to think about buying something for lunch, so let’s go.’

‘Um…’ Mrs. Darcy said, ‘I’ll be out in a few minutes to join you; I just want to have a look around here first.’

‘Ok’, Mrs. Trollop said before she and Ms. Hardy disappeared into the crowd outside, ‘We’ll be waiting for you!’

Over the next few seconds, the Colosseum became quiet and devoid of people as the doors at the front closed.

‘This place is absolutely massive on the inside!’ Mrs. Darcy said to Mr. Gillton as they walked back into the performance area, ‘I’ve never seen anything like it!’

It was then that she heard a familiar voice coming from behind a flap beside the stands at the back of the performance area.

‘…and don’t forget’, Vandevere said to a group of performers in the backstage corridor, ‘Tonight’s performance is for the VIPs that are coming.’

‘Ok’, the group said simultaneously before retreating to their rooms while Vandevere disappeared out the flap where he saw Mrs. Darcy and Mr. Gillton.

‘Oh’, he said in a surprised voice, ‘Mrs. Darcy and Mr. Gillton. What are you doing here?’

‘Sorry, Mr. Vandevere’, Mr. Gillton said, ‘We heard voices behind the flap there, so we came over to investigate.’

‘I see’, Vandevere said, ‘Anyway, the Colosseum is now closed, so it’s time to make your way out.’

‘I can’t believe how big this place is’, Mrs. Darcy said while blushing, ‘Those rumours that I’ve heard most certainly turned out to be correct.’

‘There’s plenty more to see around Dreamland, my dear’, Vandevere said before he winked at her.

 _‘Oh, my!’_ Mrs. Darcy thought, _‘He just called me “dear”!’_

Over the next half-minute, Mrs. Darcy and Vandevere gazed into each other’s eyes until they were interrupted by Mr. Gillton.

‘Well then’, he said, ‘It’s time to go to lunch…Mrs. Darcy? Are you with me?’

‘Oh’, Mrs. Darcy said as she turned her head to face him, ‘Ok. Let’s go.’

‘Well’, Vandevere said, ‘In that case, I’ll be heading off myself.’

‘Well, that was weird’, Mr. Gillton said as he and Mrs. Darcy walked outside through the main glass doors, ‘What has got into you?’

‘Oh, it’s nothing’, Mrs. Darcy sighed, ‘Let’s go and get something to eat; they’re waiting for us.’

_‘I can’t believe that he is missing in action!’_ Mrs. Darcy thought sadly of her husband of three years as she took a bite out of a hot-dog, _‘I miss him so much!’_

‘Hey, Mrs. Darcy’, Mrs. Trollop said from the other side of the table, ‘Are you ok?’

‘Yes’, Mrs. Darcy sighed sadly, ‘It’s just that my husband, Jacob, is missing in action and now I fear the worst may have happened…’

‘Oh, Mrs. Darcy’, Mrs. Trollop, Ms. Hardy and Mr. Gillton said, We’re so sorry. Is there anything we can do to help?’

‘Thanks for your concern’, Mrs. Darcy said, ‘But I can manage.’

This caused Mr. Gillton to remember what happened in the Colosseum and in the foyer a few weeks prior.

 _‘Oh’_ , he thought, _‘Now I know what’s been going on.’_

**Meanwhile, at the top of the tower…**

‘Anytime, son’, Vandevere said to Bertie before he exited the office.

‘Thanks, Dad’, Bertie said before closing the door and walking to the elevator, opening the doors and stepping in.

A few seconds later, the doors opened again on the ground floor.

 _‘Ok’_ , he thought as he walked through the main doors and into the sunshine, _‘Time to find Mrs…’_

‘Ah, Bertie’, Mrs. Darcy said as she walked over from a nearby picnic table, ‘Where were you?’

‘Oh’, Bertie said, ‘I was just at the top of the tower talking with Dad. Anyway, he wanted me to give you this.’

‘What is it?’ Mrs. Darcy asked.

‘The envelope contains a family admission voucher for up to five people; after I told him about how Jacobsen couldn’t come today, he gave it to me and told me to give it to you.’

 _‘Aha!’_ Mrs. Darcy thought upon hearing what Bertie had just said, _‘That figure I saw through the round window earlier_ was _him!’_

‘Um…thank you, Bertie’, she said.

‘Anytime, Mrs. Darcy’, Bertie said before he thought of something, ‘About the episode in the Colosseum earlier; I was just beyond the flap in the backstage corridor and saw everything that happened.’

‘You _saw_ everything?’ Mrs. Darcy asked with a shocked voice.

‘Um, well, yes’, Bertie replied, ‘And going by how you were looking at each other, I think I know what might be going on too…’

‘What do you mean?’ Mrs. Darcy asked.

‘I’ll tell you what’, Bertie replied, ‘Why don’t you come up to the top of the tower with me for a surprise?’

‘Ok’, Mrs. Darcy said as they headed through the main doors.

**A few minutes later…**

‘Alright’, Bertie said before he knocked on a big wood and metal door at the end of a short corridor on the top floor, ‘This is Dad’s office…also our living space.’

Suddenly, a small speaker in the door blared with a familiar voice.

‘Please come on in, Bertie and…Mrs. Darcy??’ Vandevere said from the other side of the door in a confused voice.

‘Ok’, Bertie said as he opened the door and they walked in before he closed it again.

 _‘Wow!’_ Mrs. Darcy thought as she looked around the large room in awe, _‘I’ve never seen anything like this before!’_

‘Bertie…’ Vandevere said, ‘Why is Mrs. Darcy up here in my office?’

‘Well, Dad’, Bertie began, ‘Following what happened in the Colosseum earlier, I thought…’

‘Wait a minute’, Vandevere said, ‘You were _spying_ on us??’

‘What…no!’ Bertie said, ‘I just happened to see you gazing into each other’s eyes…rather, um…longingly, so I thought that Mrs. Darcy may have wanted to come up to see you.’

‘Son, I know you meant well in bringing her up’, Vandevere said, ‘However, you should _never_ spy on people without their permission.’

‘Sorry, Dad’, Bertie said, ‘It won’t happen again.’

‘Anyway, Mr. Vandevere’, Mrs. Darcy said nervously, ‘It’s…um…well…I, uh, c-can’t get over h-how, uh, l-large and sp-spotless this p-place is!’

‘I see’, Vandevere said, ‘That’s because the floor is polished three times a day by a robotic floor cleaner; in fact, it’s time for another clean right now.’

Suddenly, as if on cue, a tiny square-shaped metal box painted to look like the French flag entered the room through a square shaped hole in the back wall and started polishing the floor by moving from wall to wall starting from the left-hand side.

‘What’s that?’ Mrs. Darcy asked.

‘The box-shaped object that is cleaning the floor is a NX1.0 Cleaner-Bot, invented by me and one of the technicians, Pipsqueak, in 1913; Pipsqueak built the robot, while I wrote the programs for it in BlueCoat, a programming language also of my invention’, Vandevere replied, ‘Anyway, Bertie said that you wanted to come up to see me, is that correct?’

‘Um…w-well, yes’, Mrs. Darcy said nervously, ‘The truth is that I…I mean, I think that…I…you…’

‘Go on’, Vandevere said, knowing all too well what she was wanting to say, ‘What is it?’

‘Well, I was going to say that, um…I love you, I believe’, Mrs. Darcy said.

‘What??’ Mr. Vandevere asked when he nearly fell out of his chair in shock, ‘Is this really happening??’

‘I believe so’, Mrs. Darcy replied, ‘What happened in the Colosseum said it all.’

 _‘Oh my, she’s right’,_ Vandevere thought as the events from 30 minutes ago played in his mind, _‘The way we gazed into each other’s eyes; I knew something was up.’_

‘Sweet cheese, you’re right!’ he blurted, ‘And I feel the same way too.’

It was then that Collette walked into the room just as Vandevere and Mrs. Darcy kissed.

‘AAAHHH!’ she yelped with surprise and horror, ‘Sacré bleu!’

‘Language, Collette!’ Vandevere said in a shocked voice, ‘Bertie’s in here.’

‘Sorry’, Collette said, ‘It’s just that I’ve never seen you, out of all people, kiss a woman so passionately.’

‘Ok, you’ve caught me’, Vandevere said, ‘At least I’ve finally found true love in Mrs. Darcy.’

‘Wait a minute’, Collette said when she realised something, ‘Missus?? But she’s already married! You _can’t_ take another man’s spouse like that!!’

‘Well’, Mrs. Darcy said in response, ‘From what I know, my husband of three years has been killed while fighting overseas.’

This revelation caused a mischievous grin to appear on Vandevere’s face.

‘Wait a minute’, he said to Mrs. Darcy, ‘Your husband’s been …uh, has fallen in the war?’

‘As far as I know, yes’, Mrs. Darcy said sadly, ‘Why?’

‘Oh, nothing’, Vandevere said, ‘Just wondering.’

A couple of seconds later, he put a small box on his desk and opened it, revealing the shiniest, most expensive silver ring that Mrs. Darcy had ever seen.

‘Oh, my!’ she said with excitement, ‘Is that…’

‘Mrs. Darcy, my dear’, Vandevere said, ‘It would be a great honour to have you become the Empress of Dreamland. Will you marry me?’

‘OH, MY GOODNESS!!’ Mrs. Darcy shrieked after a short period of silence, ‘YES!!’

‘Hold on!’ Collette said, ‘What about me being your starlet? What happens now?’

‘Don’t worry, you’ll still be the “Queen of the Heavens”’, Vandevere said.

However, Mrs Darcy’s husband, Jacob had been sent home because of his broken leg and had just arrived in New York City.

**Later that evening…**

‘What the…?’ Jacob said when he saw his wife standing outside the gates of Dreamland with Vandevere, hand in hand, ‘ **What** in tarnation is _this_ all about, eh!?’

‘Ain’t she a beautiful sight to behold?’ Vandevere said before he realised what was going on, ‘Dear??’

‘Oh, Jacob!’ Mrs. Darcy said as she kissed her husband, ‘I never thought I would see you again!’

‘The telegrams should have told you that I was coming home due to my leg injury’, Jacob said before he turned and slowly made his way towards Vandevere on his crutches.

‘You, sick wacko!’ he said when he bonked Vandevere on the head with one of the crutches, ‘How **dare** you take my wife like that!?’

‘Wait!’ Vandevere said as he threw his arms up in defence, ‘I can explain!’

‘Yeah right!’ Jacob shouted, ‘I was thousands of miles away fighting and nearly being killed, before I was sent home and what do I see? **My** wife playing Jodi with a wealthy narcissistic turd of a man; **you** even put a **ring** on her finger!!’

It was then the realisation that this man was her husband came to Vandevere.

‘ _Oh, goodness’_ , he thought, _‘What have I done?’_

‘How long has **this** been going on for, eh??’ Jacob asked Mrs. Darcy.

‘Well’, Mrs. Darcy replied, ‘Mr. Vandevere visited the school just over a month ago and invited all of us to spend today at Dreamland, so I suppose it started then; he even had me up in the tower.’

Jacob then glared angrily at Vandevere.

‘Oh, I see’, he said, ‘Thought that you could get away with taking her up to your office to have your way with her, eh!?’

‘We were just talking up there!’ Vandevere said, ‘It was perfectly innocent, I promise; even Bertie was there with us!’

‘Oh, so I suppose the ring just appeared out of thin air and flew onto her finger’, Jacob said as he took the ring off Mrs. Darcy’s finger and threw it at him, ‘Well then, _Mr. Vandevere_ , we’ll be boycotting **your** company **and** Dreamland from now on!’

‘Come on’, Jacob said as he and Mrs. Darcy walked away, leaving Vandevere humiliated and heartbroken, ‘Let’s go home.’

‘Don’t you think that your “boycott” idea may be taking it a bit far?’ Mrs Darcy said, ‘I mean, he only made a simple mistake; he genuinely thought that you weren’t coming back, as did I.’

‘No’, Jacob said, ‘That crazy tycoon deserves it. And yes, we’ll be telling other people to join us in boycotting as well.


	27. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Influenza forces Dreamland to close temporarily; outsiders desperately try to break in; Vandevere is revealed to have an unusual taste in pyjamas and slippers.

_Late 1918 – early 1919; the influenza pandemic spreads across America and around the world, forcing Dreamland to close for a few months._

‘ **Hospitals overflowing with sick and dying patients’** , Vandevere reads on the front cover of the morning paper at his desk.

‘Oh no…’ he said in disbelief, ‘This is utterly terrible!’

‘What’s terrible, Dad?’ Bertie asked as he walked into the office.

‘It’s just that people won’t be coming through the gates and making **me** money because we’ve been ordered to shut down until further notice due to the influenza pandemic sweeping the nation!’ Vandevere replied.

‘But what about school?’ Bertie asked.

‘I’m afraid you’ll have to be home-schooled for the time being, since all schools and public places have been shut down’, Vandevere replied, ‘We and many of the employees and performers are trapped here with us behind the closed gates for at least a few months.’

‘Hold on!’ Bertie said when he realised what this meant, ‘How are we going to get food and other supplies?’

‘Don’t worry’, Vandevere replied, ‘There’s a huge stash of canned food and medical supplies in the basement of the tower, not to mention the food and drink stalls around the park.’

‘I suppose so’, Bertie said, ‘At least we can spend our days eating and riding on any of the rides.’

‘That’s exactly what I was going to say’, Vandevere said when he realised this, ‘We technically have the park to ourselves until the pandemic is over!’

**Later that night, outside the perimeter fence…**

‘Ok, boys’, a young man named Graham said to two of his friends, Todd and Fred, ‘See that? That’s our target.’

‘See what, Graham?’ Todd asked.

‘Oh, my goodness’, Graham said when he facepalmed, ‘The stalls and shops of Dreamland have stockpiles of food that we need; so, we’re going to scale the fence.’

‘But what if we’re caught?’ Fred asked, ‘Don’t forget that the crazy grouch of a tycoon lives at the top of the tower, and he’s the last person who we want to be seen by…’

‘We won’t be caught’, Graham said, ‘This whole place has been closed down because of the influenza pandemic, as has most of the city, not to mention that he’s probably in the hospital or dead by now, so we’re good to go.’

‘Ok then’, Todd and Fred said as they threw ropes over the back fence and started to climb.

**Meanwhile, at the top of the tower…**

_‘Nothing like a good glass of water at midnight to calm the nerves’_ , Vandevere thought as he turned around in his swivel chair to face the round window.

 _‘What a glorious night’_ , he thought while watching the twinkling stars and the sea below, before something caught his attention; it seemed like something was moving up the back fence!

 _‘What the…?’_ he thought as he rushed to his door and unlocked it before heading down the stairs and into the Control Room, waking the three technicians up in the process.

‘Hm…wha…what?’ Pipsqueak said when he opened his eyes to see Vandevere in his pyjamas and slippers looking out the window and in the direction of the back fence, ‘What’s wrong, sir?’

‘I think we may have a breach’, Vandevere said before he located the “Main Power” leaver and pulled it down, causing the park to be illuminated and the three boys climbing the fence to become visible.

‘AAAHHH!!’ they said when they saw the Control Room and the round window at the top of the tower light up, ‘They’ve spotted us!’

Suddenly, voices started yelling in the direction of the tower before footsteps gradually got louder as they came towards them.

‘Let’s get out of here!’ Graham said as they jumped down onto the sand below and ran off, leaving the ropes behind.

‘Hm…’ Vandevere said, ‘It seems that the would-be intruders were trying to scale the fence, probably to raid the food and drink stalls. I think we should leave the perimeter lights on from now on as a deterrent.’

‘Agreed, Mr. Vandevere’, Pipsqueak said while struggling not to laugh, ‘However, I think that your pyjamas and slippers would bedazzle anyone who saw you.’

‘Why are you laughing?’ Vandevere said, ‘There is absolutely **nothing** wrong with a grown man wearing rainbow-coloured pyjamas with light pink polka-dots and white and gold slippers!’

‘No, of course not!’ Pipsqueak said, ‘Why would you think I thought otherwise?’

‘Well, you were laughing at me a few seconds ago’, Vandevere said.

‘I was laughing _with_ you, not _at_ you’, Pipsqueak said.

‘Anyway, it’s time to go back to bed’, Vandevere said.


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One of the rides in Dreamland breaks down with Vandevere and Bertie on it; Holt tell Vandevere off ove a few questionable photos; Vandevere decides to dicipline Dumbo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warning: Vandevere threatens to use a bull-hook on Dumbo (with the latter cowering in fear.)

At 10:30 the following morning, Vandevere and Bertie were on one of the two log flumes and in a cavern half-way through when it broke down for the umpteenth time during the last two months and stopped moving completely, leaving them stranded in the middle of an artificial river.

‘Not again!’ Vandevere said in disbelief, ‘This thing is _always_ breaking down at the most inconvenient times!’

‘Well, Gates of the Crystal Blue has been operating continuously since Dreamland opened on 20th April 1912, which was a week before you adopted me, so the ride _is_ starting to show signs of age.’

It was then that a mechanic walked into sight.

‘Gates of the Crystal Blue will be up and running again as soon as possible, sir’, he said, ‘Just a safety cut-out, that’s all.’

 _‘At least it wasn’t a failure of the station brakes’_ , Bertie thought, _‘Or we could have been going around the track for goodness knows how long.’_

‘Hm…’ Vandevere said, ‘Since this ride breaks down so often, how’s about we change the name to…I don’t know…Gates of Hades, perhaps?’

‘Um, Dad?’ Bertie said, ‘I think a better idea would be to give the ride an upgrade so it no longer breaks down as often.’

‘I’m already on to that, Bertie’, Vandevere said before the boat started moving again, ‘It just takes time, that’s all.’

‘Come on’, Bertie said, ‘You’ve been meaning to fix this for two years now, and you _still_ haven’t even started!’

  


_May 25 th_

_1919_

_‘What the heck?’_ Holt thought when he opened a draw in a chest of draws in the Farrier suite, only to see a large brown envelope filled with what looked like papers of some sort, _‘What are these?’_

However, he was horrified to discover that the envelope contained pictures of Collette that were of a very questionable nature.

 _‘Right!’_ he thought angrily as he stormed out of the room and down the hallway towards the stairs, _‘Time to see what this is about.’_

‘See what about what?’ Collette asked.

‘It’s just some pictures I found in an old set of drawers in our suite’, Holt replied, ‘Whatever you do, _don’t_ look at them, and make sure the kids don’t see them either.’

‘Ok’, Collette said as the main door closed behind Holt.

  


Outside, it was already a warm late-spring night with no-one in sight, since Dreamland had just closed.

‘Hey!’ the guard at the base of the tower began before being cut off, ‘You can’t go…’

‘Get out of my way, bucko!’ Holt said as he pushed him out of the way before he stormed up the stairs, ‘I need to talk to Mr. Vandevere about something important!’

  


**A few minutes later…**

Vandevere watched the park below become shrouded in darkness and was just about to go to bed himself when there was a loud bang on the other side of the door followed by someone shouting “OPEN UP!!”

 _‘Oh, for crying out loud!’_ Vandevere thought before giving the person on the other side of the door permission to come in.

  


‘Sorry to disturb you, Mr. Vandevere’, Holt said as he closed the door, ‘But I want to talk about something.’

‘Ok’, Vandevere said, ‘What is it?’

Holt then unfolded one of the pictures and placed it on the desk.

‘YOU, DISGUSTING SLEEZEBALL!!’ he screamed, ‘How could you do **this** to Collette!!?’

‘Whoa’, Vandevere said with a big smile on his face when he saw the picture, ‘You found my photos.’

‘That’s **not** what this is about!’ Holt shouted, ‘Don’t you _at least_ have _some_ dignity!?’

‘Look’, Vandevere said, ‘They’re leftovers from my film producing and directing days; I took them for fun in between shoots, that’s all.’

‘Yes, and I think I know what sort of “fun” it was as well’, Holt said, ‘Now, do you _really_ believe that Collette would have approved of these if she’d known their real purpose?’

‘Um…what are you talking about?’ Vandevere asked.

‘Oh nothing’, Holt replied, ‘Except for the fact that **you** hid them out of sight in those drawers so you could close the door and curtains and USE THEM FOR PRIVATE “SELF-GRATIFICATION” PURPOSES!!’

‘What are you suggesting!?’ Vandevere shouted, ‘I’d **never** do anything like that to anyone!!’

‘Oh yeah?’ Holt asked, ‘Well then, I hope it shrinks…or falls off altogether!’

‘You take that back!’ Vandevere shouted, ‘I’ve never been so insulted in all my life!’

He then took his cane out of its holder and whacked the window behind him hard in anger, causing it to shatter.

‘Well, that was clever’, Holt said sarcastically as he facepalmed, ‘Real smooth, wa-’

‘Enough!’ Vandevere shouted when he pushed Holt to the edge where the window once was, ‘Speak again and I’ll push you off!’

Suddenly, Vandevere lost his footing and fell out.

‘Mr. Vandevere!’ Holt shouted from inside the office as he disappeared into the darkness.

  


_‘Goodbye, world’,_ Vandevere thought as he fell to the ground until something lifted him into the air.

‘What the…?’ he said when he noticed that Dumbo had flown out of the Colosseum to save him.

‘Dumbo!’ he said, although he wasn’t happy about him being out of his pen at this hour, or outside the Colosseum at all, ‘You should be in your pen! Come on, let’s go there.’

  


After landing a few minutes later, Vandevere walked to the entrance of the Colosseum to meet Holt.

‘And it turns out that Dumbo saved my life’, he said, ‘I don’t know what would have happened to Dreamland otherwise. However, I will need to get that window replaced so no-one else falls out of the office.’

‘Yes’, Holt said, ‘I should think so, too. Anyway, goodnight.’

‘See you tomorrow, Holt’, Vandevere said before he returned to Dumbo’s pen, where his more sinister nature came out.

‘Ok, Dumbo’, he said coldly as he grabbed a bull-hook from off the back wall, ‘For disobeying orders and leaving your pen, you’re going to pay.’

Upon noticing the weapon in his hand, Dumbo cowered in fear and began slowly moving backwards until he was in a corner.

‘MWAHAHAHA!’ Vandevere laughed evilly, ‘No-one can save or hear you, not even your mother!’

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The Gates of Hades" was a name that Vandevere suggested regarding the renaming of Gate to the Crystal Blue, one of two log flumes in Dreamland; this ride is a parody of HellGate in the real-life park.


	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dumbo, Mrs. Jumbo and the troupe escape; Dreamlad burns down; Bertie goes to live with his grand-parents; Vandevere is put in a mental asylum and meets his grandson.

The following night at 9:55, Dumbo and Collette flew out through a hole in the roof of the Colosseum, much to the disappointment of the audience and a now-fuming Vandevere.

‘WHERE HAVE THEY GONE!!?’ he screamed at Skellig before shoving him out of the way and storming out of the VIP box.

Meanwhile, Collette and Dumbo had just landed outside the Control Room at the top of the tower and were just about to configure the controls when they were stopped by the technicians.

‘Hey!’ one of them said to Collette as he pulled her away, ‘You can’t do that!’

However, they had forgotten completely about Dumbo, who started pulling leavers to turn the lights and power off.

**A few seconds later…**

‘Uh…stairs had been invented last time I’d checked’, Vandevere said to a guard who had just reported that the elevator wasn’t working due to the loss of power, ‘Come on, let’s go up to see what’s happened.’

‘Uh…ok’, the guard said as they briskly walked to the tower.

A couple of minutes later, Vandevere and the guard had climbed into the Control Room where Vandevere demanded Collette to tell him why the power was out, which caused him to almost swear before she corrected him and flew away with Dumbo.

_‘Why, that ungrateful little…’_ Vandevere thought as he pulled a lever on the central column down forcibly, causing a spark and the alarm to go off while giving him a static shock, making him angrier in the process, until he finally went haywire with the controls.

‘Out of my way!’ he said to Pipsqueak as he pushed him to the side before storming over to the panel and moving the leavers back and forth like a lunatic, causing bright showers of sparks and starting a fire in the back of the Colosseum before it was decided to evacuate the park.

‘Right’, Pipsqueak said before running up the stairs, ‘I’ll go and retrieve Bertie.’

‘Bertie’, he said a few seconds later after he opened the door to Vandevere’s office, only to find the 11-year old half asleep in the swivel chair.

‘Bertie, wake up!’ Pipsqueak said in a panic, ‘The park’s on fire and we need to leave!’

‘Hm…wha…WHAT??’ Bertie said before he saw a bright orange glow through the newly replaced round window, ‘Let’s go!’

A few seconds later, they caught up with the other technicians and Vandevere, who was giving them an earful of French expletives which horrified Bertie.

‘Dad!’ he said in horror, I’ve _never_ heard you swear so much before!’

Finally, they arrived at the bottom of the stairs and burst through the main doors where crowds of people were running out towards the entrance as the fire got larger and began spreading, eliminating all hope of saving Dreamland.

**Half an hour later…**

Vandevere watched on in horror as he watched Dreamland burn down with the huge crowd behind him, which gradually became smaller as time went by.

Finally, hours after the chaos had started, Vandevere found himself inside the back of a police wagon.

‘LET ME OUT OF HERE!!!’ he screamed as he shook the bars.

‘ **Don’t** make this any worse for yourself by gaining extra charges, mad-man!’ one of the police officers said, ‘You’ve already resisted arrest and spat on my colleague in the driver’s seat, before backup arrived.’

‘Serves you right, buffoon tycoon!’ Bertie shouted as his grandparents arrived, ‘You were **never** fit for fatherhood; goodness knows why you adopted me in the first place, since you only **ever** cared about yourself and that **stupid** park!!’

‘Come on, Bertie’, his grandmother said, ‘Let’s go to your real home.’

‘Ok’, Bertie said before the trio walked away as one of the police officers walked toward the barred window in the back of the wagon whilst carrying Vandevere’s cane.

‘My cane!’ Vandevere said as he reached for it, only to be blocked by the bars, ‘Please, give it here.’

‘Oh, no, you don’t’, the officer said, ‘You’re not going to **ever** see this again, as it’s been repossessed; I’m sure someone else could find a good use for such a shiny, decorative object, though.’

A month later, it was found that Vandevere was mentally ill and thus couldn’t stand trial or be found guilty of arson through misconduct or animal cruelty, unlike his closest allies; instead, he was sent to a mental asylum, along with his cane, since he refused to part from it.

_August 17 th_

‘Ooohh…’ Vandevere said when he woke up, ‘Where am I?’

‘Why, you’re one of our high-risk residents’, a doctor named Claude said, ‘You were sent here after what happened on May 26th. Anyway, there are some visitors for you.’

‘Ok’, Vandevere said, ‘Send them in.’

Claude opened the big door at the end of the room to let a young, brown-haired woman carrying a baby and her husband in before he left and closed the door.

‘Who are you?’ Vandevere asked.

‘Don’t you remember?’ the woman replied, ‘I’m your daughter, Marie, and these are my husband, Jean-Claude and our new-born son, Valiant.’

‘What??’ Vandevere asked in a shocked voice, ‘You named your son…after me?’

‘Yes, Dad’, Marie replied.

‘Anyway’, Jean-Claude said, ‘We’re so sorry about what happened to Dreamland and Vandevere Enterprises earlier in the year.’

‘Yes’, Vandevere said, ‘Dreamland was my pride and joy until it burned down that night. At least I’ve still got my cane and…ahem…buried all the films that I made from 1913 to 1917 under the park a year before the fire.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is a tearjerker, especially for fans of V.A Vandevere.


	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vandevere loses all four limbs in an accident and dies a few months later; Collette and the troupe take the news hard; Sotheby turns up at the newly-formed circus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warnings: Mentions of suicide and graphic depiction of animal cruelty.

The next day, Vandevere and a small group of other residents went on a special outing to Barnum’s Circus.

 _Wow!’_ Vandevere thought as a trio of trapeze artists finished a highly complex routine and landed on their platforms at the sides and behind the three rings.

‘Let’s hear it for Les Papillions!’ the ringmaster bellowed from the front of the main ring as a big, black bear and an elephant walked in alongside their trainers, ‘Now for the amazing Bubbles and Edward!’

 _‘Just like the animal acts at Dreamland’_ , Vandevere thought as Bubbles stood on a giant ball on his hind legs as Edward sat down like a human on a giant green and gold stool.

**Half an hour later…**

‘Ok, everyone’, Claude said to the group after the show had finished, ‘It’s time to return home.’

‘Wait a minute!’ Marcus said, ‘Where’s Mr. Vandevere?’

Suddenly, as if on cue, they heard a car-horn followed by panicked screaming before a woman came running up to them.

‘What’s wrong, mam?’ Marcus asked.

‘There…there’s been…an accident at the corner’, the woman replied, ‘A man’s been hit by a car.’

It was then that Claude and Marcus realised where Vandevere probably was.

‘Oh no…’ they said in a panic, ‘We better get to the scene as quickly as possible!

‘An ambulance and a police car are already there’, the woman said, ‘From what I could see, the man wasn’t in a good way after being hit…he seemed to have run in front of the car deliberately as well.’

‘Thanks for the information’, Claude and Marcus said before they ran to the corner where a small crowd had gathered.

‘Mr. Vandevere’, one of the doctors said, ‘Can you hear me?’

‘Ugh…’ Vandevere said, ‘Who are you…and why am I lying in the middle of the road?’

‘You were hit by a car after you ran onto the road’, the doctor said, as Vandevere tried to lift his legs, only to yelp in pain and lie them back down, ‘I see you’ve discovered that both your legs are broken; your arms were snapped as well when you fell onto them from the force of the impact.’

‘Ohh…’ Vandevere moaned as he was moved onto a stretcher and carried to the ambulance.

_Six months later, a now permanently wheelchair bound and limbless Vandevere was discharged from hospital and returned to a ‘Welcome Home’ party at the mental asylum…_

‘Welcome back, Mr. Vandevere!’ Claude said as Marcus wheeled him into the room where he and the other residents were gathered, ‘It’s so good to see you again after half a year in hospital!’

‘Yes’, Marcus said, ‘Speaking of you being absent, we even left your Christmas gifts wrapped for you and put them in the wardrobe in the corner of the room.’

‘Let’s go and open them then’, Vandevere said.

‘Ok’, Marcus said as he wheeled him over to the wardrobe, ‘I and Claude will help you with unwrapping them, since you lost both your arms due to the accident.’

**A few minutes later…**

‘Soda?’ Vandevere asked, ‘Who gave me this?’

‘It’s from a woman named Claire’, Claude replied before he read the label and corrected himself, ‘Actually, it’s from her husband, John.’

‘Tell him thank you for the soda’, Vandevere said, ‘I may have a cup right…’

However, before he could finish, he noticed that the soda contained a certain substance.

_“Warning: Contains a source of phenylalanine”_ , the label read on the back of the bottle.

‘On second thought’, he said, ‘I don’t think I should have any of this at all, especially since it contains phenylalanine.’

‘Why not?’ Marcus asked.

‘I’ve already told Claude this’, Vandevere replied, ‘But I was born with PKU, which means that I can’t metabolize phenylalanine as well as most people. Because of this, I need to be very careful about what I consume and the amount on a daily basis, so I’m afraid that soda is out of the question.’

‘Oh’, Marcus said, ‘How about fruit juice then?’

‘Yes’, Vandevere said, ‘That would be good.’

‘Ok’, Marcus said before heading to the kitchen.

**Later that evening…**

‘Ok, Mr. Vandevere’, Marcus said as he walked into the main room at 10:35 p.m., ‘It’s time to go to bed.’

‘Right then’, Vandevere said, ‘Let’s go.’

‘Sure’, Marcus said as he began pushing Vandevere’s wheelchair down the hall, into Room #30 and closing the door.

‘Ok’, Marcus said, ‘Let’s help you change into your pyjamas.’

‘Yes’, Vandevere said.

**A few minutes later…**

‘Ok then’, Marcus said before leaving the room after Vandevere was in bed, ‘Goodnight.’

‘You too’, Vandevere said before he walked out the door and closed it.

_9 th June,_

_1924_

_10:09 a.m._

‘Mr. Vandevere’, Claude said after he knocked on the door of Room #30, ‘I’ve got you a biscuit and apple juice for morning tea.’

However, there was no response from inside the room.

‘Mr. Vandevere?’ he asked as he knocked again, ‘Can you hear me?’

‘I think that we better go in and see what’s going on’, Claude said.

‘I think so too’, Marcus said before opening the door slowly.

However, nothing could have prepared them for the horrific discovery they made upon opening the door.

‘Oh, my goodness, Mr. Vandevere!’ Marcus shouted in a panic when he rushed over to the bed, ‘Are you ok??’

However, there was no response.

Mr. Vandevere?’ Marcus asked in a panicked and concerned voice, ‘Come on, Valiant, wake up!!’ Please!’

‘Um…Marcus’, Claude said sadly, ‘I don’t think he will wake up again.’

‘What?!’ Marcus asked, ‘Why not?’

‘Well, I checked for a pulse and heartbeat while you were trying to wake him, but, alas, neither are present’, Claude replied.

‘You mean he’s…’ Marcus asked.

Claude slowly nodded in response.

‘No…it c-can’t be true’, Marcus said while holding back tears, ‘The person I knew since he was two…gone just like that.’

Meanwhile, Claude had made an horrific discovery when he pulled the blanket off Vandevere’s neck.

‘Oh, my goodness!’ he yelped in shock upon seeing a thick piece of light-brown rope around his neck.

‘Marcus’, he said, ‘I b-believe that Mr. Vandevere has somehow managed to strangle himself during the night or early hours of the morning, even without any limbs!’

_June 11 th,_

_Louisville,_

_Kentucky_

‘Excellent show tonight!’ Max said to his troupe after the evening show, ‘This whole idea of a circus without wild animals is proving to be an absolute hit, especially amongst young people!’

‘Well’, Collette said, ‘Times are a changin’, and it’s for the good of the world and humanity; people no longer want to see wild animals kept in cruel, abusive conditions while being forced to perform tricks for entertainment.’

‘I agree’, Holt said, ‘Domesticated animals can be trained through humane methods, such as positive reinforcement. That was one of the main faults of Dreamland; using wild animals in the Colosseum and Nightmare Island.’

‘I know’, Miss Atlantis said, ‘That “V.A Vandevere” guy was a very broken man to treat Dumbo, Mrs. Jumbo and the other animals the way he did; he was even planning to kill Mrs. Jumbo until we rescued her!’

‘Couldn’t agree more’, Pramesh said, ‘He was even abusive towards his employees, including when he fired us suddenly for no apparent reason.’

‘Yes’, Holt said, ‘No wonder Sotheby retired from his position the night of the fire; V.A had no problem treating his butler/chauffeur like sh-’

‘Dad!’ Milly snapped, ‘What have I and Joe told you about swearing?’

‘Sorry’, Holt said, ‘It’s just that I get angry sometimes; however, that’s no excuse for swearing.’

‘It’s a wonder that any person, especially families, felt safe at Dreamland at all’, Max said, ‘I mean if he was sick enough to treat animals like objects, what could he have done to a child?’

‘I know’, Collette said, ‘That’s what frightens me; I started to feel unsafe after his first major tantrum in 1914, when he caused a huge lit-up sign to explode by repeatedly turning the power on and off in anger.’

‘And let’s not forget that it was _him_ who burned Dreamland down by snapping in the tower and overloading the electricity system, all because the lights had been turned off while we escaped.’

‘Correct’, Collette said, ‘However, I still do feel sorry for him; remember, his father _did_ abandon him and his mother when he was only sixteen, not to mention he was an alcoholic and could be really abusive and violent, often subjecting them both to beatings.’

‘Yes’, Holt said, ‘If he was crazy enough to unintentionally burn the place down and financially ruin himself, one can only imagine what his father must have been like...’

‘He did make and produce amazing films though, with fully-automated and elaborate opening and closing logos that were basically short advertisements for Dreamland’, Miss Atlantis said.

‘Yes’, Collette said, ‘And each opening logo incorporated a different theme depending on what the film was about; for example, the _The_ _Dame Who Dared_ opening logo has the Vandevere Enterprises logo being flown in front of the camera by a biplane-shaped drone that then turns around and displays it for a few seconds before flying off, while the _Naughty But Nice_ one has the logo appear over two large closed curtains while there are shadows moving in a suggestive manner behind them.’

‘Rumour has it that he buried them in a secret location in Dreamland a year before the fire in an asbestos-covered pit to protect them from fire, ironically’, Holt said, ‘I hope it is true, so someone can someday unearth them and show the world.’

‘Well’, Collette said, ‘You’ll be pleased to know that it is true; I saw him bury them in late-1918. Anyway, about someone in the future showing them to the world, who knows, we may be using computers and be connected to a worldwide knowledge source called the Internet, like V.A envisioned the technology of the future; films will, quite possibly, have sound by then anyway.’

**The next morning…**

‘Collette!’ Holt shouted in a shocked and distraught from the main tent while reading the morning paper, ‘I can’t believe this; it’s a total tragedy!’

‘What is?’ Collette said as she walked over, ‘Let me see.’

However, nothing could prepare her for what she was about to read.

“ ** _V.A Vandevere, self-proclaimed ‘Emperor of Entertainment’ and ex-owner of Dreamland, dies at 49_** _.”_

‘What?’ Collette said in disbelief, ‘I can’t believe it!’

However, a paragraph near the end of the article reduced her to tears.

_“After the Dreamland fire, Mr. Vandevere was declared to have schizophrenia, a mental illness, and thus had all charges of arson through misconduct and animal cruelty dropped and was sent to live at a mental asylum near Bellevue hospital in New York City. He tragically attempted suicide by running into the path of a speeding car in August 1919 and was permanently confined to a wheelchair until his death on June 9, which was recorded as self-strangulation.”_

‘No…just NOO!’ Collette sobbed before chucking the newspaper to the dust-covered ground and bursting into tears.

‘There, there’, Holt said as he hugged her, ‘It’s alright. He’s in a better place now.’

‘I suppose so’, Collette said.

‘What’s going on in here?’ Max asked as he walked into the tent, ‘And why is Collette in tears?’

‘It’s the top story in the paper’, Holt said, ‘V.A Vandevere…he killed himself a couple of days ago.’

‘What??’ Max said in shock and disbelief, ‘Let me see.’

‘Sure’, Holt said when giving the newspaper to him.

After reading the article, Max glanced at Collette before turning back.

‘Poor Collette…’ he said, ‘She must be absolutely distraught over what has happened.’

‘True’, Holt said, ‘As soon as she had read the article, she literally threw the newspaper onto the ground and burst into tears. I couldn’t believe it either when I read it this morning.’

‘I’m going to go over and see to her’, Max said, ‘She needs all the comfort and reassurance that we can give her.’

‘Collette’, he said as he approached her, ‘I’m so sorry about this whole ordeal.’

‘Th-thanks’, Collette sobbed, ‘Why…just why did he h-have to do t-that?’

‘I don’t know’, Max said, ‘But he made his decision, even if it was as stupid and uncaring as suicide.’

‘I guess so’, Collette sobbed, ‘It’s just that…he was t-the one who bought me here to America to w-work at Dreamland…while making me a m-movie star in the process.’

That night, Collette had a strange dream.

_‘Ugh…’ she said, ‘Where am I?’_

_Suddenly, she heard a faint voice coming from the ceiling._

_‘What the…’ she said when she saw a winged human descend to the floor in front of her, ‘Who are you?’_

_‘Don’t you remember, ma Cherie?’ the winged person said, ‘I’m your ex-boss, V.A Vandevere.’_

_‘Hold on a minute!’ Collette said, ‘If you’re Mr. Vandevere, then how did you get those wings?’_

_‘I received them as soon as I hatched out of my body after it died before departing to Heaven’, Vandevere said._

_‘What’s Heaven like then?’ Collette asked._

_‘It’s an absolutely incredible place, far beyond what any human on Earth can imagine’, Vandevere replied, ‘I’m already starting to have Dreamland rebuilt up there as well, although it’s going to be a lot more advanced. Anyway, I’ve finally met my mother and aunt again, not to mention their father for the first time, and they’ve been doing well.’_

_‘I see’, Collette said, ‘Anyway, it’s been nice to see you again.’_

_‘No problem’, Vandevere said, ‘Goodnight.’_

_A second later, he straightened his white, feathery wings and disappeared through the ceiling._

_‘Goodnight, Mr. Vandevere’, Collette said, ‘May we meet again someday.’_

****

The next morning, the president declared three days of mourning due to what happened on June 9.

‘Everyone’, Max said as the troupe was gathered around the ring in the main tent, ‘I’m afraid that all shows for the next few days have been cancelled due to what happened on the 9th with Mr. Vandevere.’

‘We understand’, the troupe said collectively, ‘The whole nation is in mourning for the next 72 hours since the president declared it this morning, according to a “breaking news” bulletin on the radio.’

‘Yes’, Max said, ‘It’s a very sad time for everyone across the nation.’

Suddenly, the air was filled with the faint sound of an engine purring down a gravel road.

‘What is that?’ Collette asked as the noise became gradually louder as a car came into sight.

‘Hey, wait a minute!’ Max shouted as the car left the road and was heading straight for the tent where Milly and Joe were at full speed, ‘WATCH OUT!!’

‘What the…’ Milly said upon looking outside and seeing the speeding sedan heading straight for them, ‘C’mon, Joe, let’s go!’

‘Ok’, Joe said as they ran outside to safety mere seconds before the car ploughed through the tent and crashed into a lamppost a few seconds later.

‘Phew!’ Milly said, ‘That was close.’

‘Milly, Joe!’ Holt said as he ran towards them while everyone else gathered around the car, ‘Are you ok?’

‘Yes, Dad’, Milly and Joe said collectively.

Meanwhile, the door on the driver’s side of the car opened and fell to the ground with a thud and shattering of glass before the driver stood up.

‘Sotheby?’ Collette asked, ‘What happened?’

‘I must have fallen asleep while making my way here to meet you’, Sotheby replied, ‘Anyway, I’m sorry about the lamppost and tent.’

‘Dah, it’s ok’, Max said, ‘This post has stood up to all kinds of weather and abuse and is still standing strong…’

Suddenly, as if on cue, the post fell over onto the car, completely crushing the driver’s seat.

‘Uh…on second thought, it _may_ need replacing, as will the tent’, Max said.

 _‘At least I wasn’t in my seat when the post came down’_ , Sotheby thought.

‘Anyway’, Max said, ‘I’m assuming you’ve heard about what happened to Mr. Vandevere.’

‘Yes’, Sotheby said, ‘It’s an utter tragedy that’s been felt across the nation. I can’t believe that he chose suicide as the way to escape his depression brought on by the Dreamland fire over five years ago.’

‘Us neither’, Max and the troupe said collectively.

‘Anyway’, Collette said, ‘I had a dream last night where he had wings and was living in an incredible place called Heaven, and…and…’

It was then that she burst into tears.

‘…s-sorry’, she sobbed before running into the main tent, ‘I h-have to go.’

‘Collette’s taken the news really hard’, Max said sadly, ‘We all have been affected in one way or another.’

‘I understand’, Sotheby said, ‘When I heard about it a couple of days ago, I thought I had gone insane at first; thought it was a bunch of cobblers.’

‘What?’ everyone asked in confused voices, ‘We don’t get it.’

‘In other words, I thought it was rubbish that the newspaper editors had added to the article to make money’, Sotheby replied.

‘Oh’, Max and the troupe said, ‘Now we understand.’

A few seconds later, Miss Atlantis noticed something.

‘Sotheby’, she said, ‘Is that a tear in your eye?’

‘What?’ Sotheby said, ‘Of course not. It’s just a reaction to the dust around here, that’s all.’

‘Oh, um, ok’, Miss Atlantis said.

Later that day, Collette asked Sotheby a question.

‘Sotheby’, she asked, ‘You remember how you resigned from your job back at Dreamland after Mr. Vandevere “gave the order” the night of the fire, right?’

‘Yes’, Sotheby replied, ‘I found his intention to send Mrs. Jumbo to her death so horrific and immoral that I couldn’t stomach the thought of working for him anymore; Skellig was no better either, if not worse, since he was going to do the killing part.’

‘I know’, Collette said, ‘Both had a rather “creepy” way about them….I found it abhorrent as soon as you’d said it to us that night – I honestly don’t know how a person – if that’s what they are – can think that sort of thing is normal and then go to bed at the end of the day.’

‘I know’, Sotheby said, ‘I’ve found things involving animal cruelty or unnecessary killing horrific since I was seven in 1876.’

‘What happened in that year that was so horrible?’ Collette asked.

‘I was taken on my first fox hunt that autumn’, Sotheby replied, ‘It was a yearly tradition for upper-class and aristocratic families in Britain to spend a day on horseback travelling through the woodlands with a pack of trained foxhounds chasing after a fox until it was caught…usually rather violently.’

‘Sacré bleu!’ Collette said with a shocked voice, ‘How could anyone possibly find pleasure in something that cruel??’

‘I don’t know’, Sotheby said, ‘Anyway, after reaching a certain age, often between six and ten, all the sons in a family were invited to join the men on a supposedly “fun day out”; I, having a young mind not yet tainted by the world, gladly accepted when Father told me that we were going to ride the horses in the woods for a few hours.’

‘I see’, Collette said.

‘Anyway, after we joined everyone else, I noticed that a large pack of at least 30 dogs was joining us on our trek, so I asked why they were coming with us; Father replied by saying that they were being taken for a long walk. It’s no wonder then, that I became excited when the pack of dogs ran into the woods approximately 15 – 20 minutes later, with us following their barking.’

‘Yes’, Collette said, ‘I can see why any child would be excited by that; you didn’t know where they were going or what was happening.’

‘Yes’, Sotheby said, ‘I kept asking where the dogs were headed, but Father told me to “Be patient, you’ll find out soon enough.” However, approximately three hours later, that excitement dwindled when we came to a clearing where the pack of dogs was while the sound of an animal crying out in fear rang though the air as they cornered a young red fox…’

‘I don’t think I can bear to hear the rest’, Collette said, ‘That poor animal…’

‘I know’, Sotheby said sadly while holding back tears, ‘It was the most horrible thing I’ve ever seen…although Father and the others somehow praised the dogs for their work after it was all over before we returned home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the end of my origin/life story, finally.
> 
> Please read the second in the series: Taken.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


End file.
